Are Duck Eggs Safe To Eat?

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Duck eggs are safe to eat and are especially good for baking as they are larger and if your ducks can free range the yolks are richer from the grazing making the baking lovely.

Duck eggs have suffered in the past from a reputation of being a high risk salmonella carrier but I have read that the salmonella issue dates back to just after World War II times when a report on salmonella listed duck eggs as a food that carried salmonella risks.

All eggs – chicken, duck, quail and guinea fowl to name a few, can all carry salmonella. We need to remember to cook the eggs thoroughly and make sure that when we are baking with them and crack the eggs that surfaces are wiped so that any uncooked egg is wiped away.

If you keep ducks or are interested in keeping ducks then visit the farmingfriends duck forum for the latest chat about ducks and then check out the khaki campbell duck eggs for hatching sales page.

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If you keep ducks or are interested in keeping ducks then check out the books shown above about keeping ducks which are informative and excellent for the beginner and a handy reference for the more experienced duck keeper.

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  1. I purchased a couple of baby ducks for pets and
    about six months later they started laying eggs. I
    do not want to waste them, but was concerned if they would be safe to eat? Thanks for the info.Jane

    Comment by jane mccalpin – October 22, 2008 @ 6:08 pm

  2. Hi Jane,
    Thanks for visiting farmingfriends and leaving a comment. I hope you found my post useful and that you are now enjoying eating your duck eggs.
    What type of ducks do you have?
    Kind regards
    Sara @ farmingfriendsComment by Sara @ Farming Friends – October 26, 2008 @ 6:21 pm
  3. HiI am a proud owner of 6 khaki cambells, 1 drake and 5 hens, the hens have recently started to lay, I have eaten and enjoyed some eggs but I have concerns regarding the risk of salmonella, whenever reading about ducks or their eggs the topic of salmonella is always there. I have given away some eggs to friends and family (no complaints yet) and I have young children who enjoy the eggs, the last thing I want to do is put anyone at risk, how safe are these eggs?Comment by Richard – December 7, 2008 @ 3:09 pm
  4. Hi Richard,
    Thanks for visiting farmingfriends and leaving your comment. I too have khaki campbell ducks and they are a joy. We have been eating our duck eggs without any problems for a number of months now.Duck eggs are safe to eat and are especially good for baking as they are larger and if your ducks can free range the yolks are richer from the grazing making the baking lovely. I have read that the salmonella issue dates back to just after World War II times when a report on salmonella listed duck eggs as a food that carried salmonella risks. All eggs – chicken, duck, quail and guinea fowl to name a few can all carry salmonella. We need to remember to cook the eggs thoroughly and make sure that when we are baking with them and crack the eggs that surfaces are wiped so that any uncooked egg is wiped away.

    It is also a good idea to try to collect the duck eggs as soon as you can so that the duck eggs are not kept in damp litter if your ducks are kept on straw and the straw gets damp from the duck muck.

    I don’t know if you wash your eggs but egg shells are porous and washing eggs can lead to bacteria passing through the shell to the egg.

    I hope that you find this information useful and reassuring and that you enjoy eating your duck eggs.
    Kind regards
    Sara @ farmingfriends

    Comment by Sara @ Farming Friends – December 8, 2008 @ 6:38 pm

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5 thoughts on “Are Duck Eggs Safe To Eat?”

  1. hi my friend has several ducks but she has not got a drake, somebody has told her that she cannot eat the eggs as she hasnt got a drake with the females, could somebody please tell me if this is true, does she need to get a drake before she can at the eggs or are they ok to eat without getting a drake ? thankyou,

  2. Me and my partner rescued ten duck eggs, unfortunately the mother of these eggs had been hit by a car. We have done some research on how to incubate them, and we have continued with the incubation process. Four of the ten eggs have veins developing inside. But what we would like to know is, if any of the other eggs do not form any veins or embryo’s are they still safe to eat now they have been incubated. Any information would be very useful.

    Many thanks

  3. that’s awesome info, thanks. We just got the clear from our land convenants and it looks like we’re going to be proud caretakers of some pekin ducks!!!

  4. Hi Simone,
    Thanks for visiting farmingfriends and leaving this question. I collect my duck eggs daily or for quail, hen and guinea fowl it may be more frequent than that.

    I place the eggs in egg trays or egg boxes and then store them in my egg house where the temperature is cool.

    If the eggs are just for home consumption then place the eggs in an egg box and place in the refrigerator.

    If the eggs do have obvious droppings or mud on them then I will remove that before placing in a fridge.

    I try to collect my eggs regularly so that the eggs are not in the nests too long as this can encourage egg eating from hens and as the guinea fowl lay their eggs outside, their eggs are targets from magpies, rook and crows.

    The duck eggs are laid by the time I let my ducks out in the morning and sometimes I wipe them with a dry tissue so that any moisture is removed.

    Duck, hen and guinea fowl eggs would officially have a consumption of 3 weeks from lay if being sold in shops but in reality if stored in a cool place can last for 6 weeks or so. quail eggs have a thinner shell and so I put about 2 and a half weeks on these eggs for sale in shops although when stored in a cool place at home they can last 3 weeks or more.

    Hope this helps.

    kind regards
    sara @ farmingfriends

  5. Hi,
    What do you do with the eggs you collect for eating? Do you simply store them unwashed in the fridge until ready to use? Do you wipe off any obvious poop or mud? Do you store them on the countertop for a few days?

    I will be getting a few Pekins soon and was wondering about egg collecting, storage and consumption.

    Thanks so much for any reply!

    Warmly,

    Simone

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