Researchers at Louisiana State University claim they have developed a method to extend the shelf life of raw eggs, improving both storage and food safety.
Their patented process uses a water-soluble chitosan derived from crustacean shells to create a protective barrier against moisture loss and bacterial contamination, according to information provided by the LSU Agricultural Center.
Eggs that have this protective coating can remain safe and edible for up to seven weeks at room temperature, LSU food scientist Yupeng Gao told Fox News Digital.
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Gao, based in Baton Rouge, worked on the project alongside fellow LSU Agricultural Center food scientists.
Chitosan is already used as a food preservative of fruits and vegetables, for example, according to LSU, and in certain medicines, according to the National Institutes of Health.
An egg is shown being coated with a water-soluble chitosan as part of a study by LSU’s Agricultural Center. (LSU AgCenter)
Current processes require chitosan to be dissolved in an acidic liquid such as vinegar for eight to 10 hours before it is ready to be applied as a coating on food, researchers said.
That leaves a “really strong, pungent smell when you’re coating food, especially fruits and fish,” Gao said.
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LSU’s new water-based dissolving process takes 15 minutes, Gao said.
“So that really helps to save time and save energy when you transport those eggs from farm to the table,” she said.
Also, because acidic liquids aren’t involved, there is no odor either, Gao said.
The result of the process is a better barrier, conserving the quality of raw eggs longer and helping them retain a “B” grade — which the U.S. Department of Agriculture categorizes as edible — for up to seven weeks at room temperature, compared with two to four weeks for eggs without the coating, according to LSU.
A coated egg looks the same as one without it. Here, food scientist Yupeng Gao holds two eggs. The one that has been coated is marked with a Christmas tree drawing on its shell. (Fox News Digital)
“We can slow the water loss and also stop the bacteria from getting inside the eggs,” Gao said.
This doesn’t mean, however, that someone who buys eggs at a grocery store should leave those eggs on the counter.
It could be quite some time before this process makes its way to store-bought eggs.
“We can also stop the bacteria from getting inside the eggs.”
Wade Baumgartner, director of LSU’s Office of Sponsored Programs and Intellectual Property, told Fox News Digital that the university’s role isn’t to seek regulatory approvals from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or the USDA.
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“What we would do is probably partner with a company that was looking to commercialize that, and then they would be the ones that would move forward with the regulatory approvals, if any were required,” he said.
Gao and her fellow food scientists have extended the length of time that an egg can remain at room temperature. (LSU AgCenter)
Fox News Digital reached out to the FDA and USDA. A spokesperson for the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service said eggshells are under the purview of the FDA and referred all inquiries to that office.
“In general, the FDA does not comment on specific studies but evaluates them as part of the body of evidence to further our understanding about a particular issue and assist in our mission to protect public health,” an FDA spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
The process isn’t exclusive to eggs, as LSU researchers said they’ve hatched successful trials on chicken, catfish and oyster, as well.
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Baumgartner called the egg project “a demonstration of the capability of the technology.”
Now, he said, the hope is that it can be used.
“There are a lot of different directions that you can take this technology,” Baumgartner said.
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That includes food preservation and finding a business partner who “would be interested in taking the technology, producing the product and getting it into the marketplace for an ingredient company, or somebody like that, that could move it to the commercial space.”
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