Why Don't We Eat Turkey Eggs?

In 2023, Americans consumed an estimated 281 eggs per person for the year (per Statista), a steady increase that has persisted since the early 2000s. And, according to United Egg Producers, there were 311 million hens laying an average of 301 eggs each by the end of 2024. The majority of eggs consumed today come from chickens, but duck, goose, quail, and others have been a food source for thousands of years. While turkey eggs were a staple for Native Americans before chickens made their way to the Americas in the 1500s, they're no longer part of the modern diet. Why? The main reason is because turkey eggs simply aren't economically viable as a food source.

The first thing to understand about why we don't eat turkey eggs is how turkeys reproduce. After toms (male turkeys) breed with hens (female turkeys) and the eggs develop, the hens don't lay them all at once. Instead, they lay them one at a time about 24 to 32 hours apart. As a result, it takes about two weeks for a turkey to lay nine to 13 eggs. While that's comparable to the 10 to 14 eggs that chickens lay in two weeks, turkeys don't lay eggs as often as chickens do — only 70 to 100 per year versus 200 to more than 300 per year.

In addition to laying fewer eggs, turkeys are larger than chickens, so they would need larger housing and more food. These additional costs would be passed on to you (the consumer), making each egg cost around $2 or $3 — that's $24 to $36 for a dozen.

While there are differences in how many eggs these birds can lay, both turkeys and chickens fertilize eggs in stages by storing and releasing the sperm. The gestation periods for the birds are also similar — about 21 days for chickens and 28 days for turkeys. However, when it comes to eating them, they may both be edible but have some differences. For starters, the chicken eggs that you get at the store are often solid brown or white, measure about 2 inches long and 1.5 inches in diameter, and weigh about 1.7 ounces. Turkey eggs, though, are cream or white with brown spots, measure about 2.5 inches long and 1.7 inches in diameter, and weigh about 3 ounces. Even the thickness of the shells differs with chicken shells being about 0.3 millimeters thick and turkey shells being about 0.4 millimeters thick.

What you can't see are the nutritional differences. A large chicken egg has 6 grams of protein (per the USDA), while a turkey egg has nearly 11 grams of protein (also per the USDA). Clearly, the turkey egg reigns supreme for those looking for a protein-rich meal option. Additionally, a turkey egg is packed with a lot more calcium and potassium. It's still important to eat these eggs in moderation, though, because of their much higher cholesterol content — 737 milligrams versus the 186 milligrams in chicken eggs. Cholesterol is no longer viewed as a major risk for cardiovascular disease and hypercholesterolemia (high blood cholesterol) because this dietary cholesterol is not the same blood cholesterol, the latter of which is affected more by saturated fat. Still, over 700 milligrams of cholesterol is much higher than the previous daily recommended intake of 200 to 300 milligrams per day.