The End of Egg Whites: Say Goodbye to the “Healthy” Omelette and Breakfast Sandwich
All yolks, all the time.
There are people who order egg white omelettes and people who don’t. (And then there are those who don’t even like eggs at all, but they’re crazy. So.) Admittedly, I am one of the people who doesn’t, and so it’s hard for me to be all that shaken up with the news that I am now sharing with you, namely, that there is a severe egg white shortage.
Via the Guardian, the demand for egg whites is at historic highs, while the supply is at similarly historic lows—in the groan-worthy words of the the Guardian, this egg white shortage is “no yolk.” As it turns out, a combination of people who are health-conscious and those who really like the frothy delights of a properly made Ramos Gin Fizz have resulted in a run on egg whites that threatens to destroy the world! Or, at the very least, make the purchase of said Ramos Fizzes, as well as things like bodega egg white sandwiches, prohibitively expensive. The Guardian reports, “According to the US food price information service Urner Barry, dried egg-white stocks are now at record lows while the cost of liquid egg whites soared by 80% in the 12 months to December.” Mostly this shortage hurts smaller businesses who won’t be able to continue offering egg white-only products without either suffering a loss or raising their prices exorbitantly. So there could easily come a time in the not too distant future when your corner deli egg white sandwich will cost $6 instead of $3, or possibly not be on offer at all!
But while we get why this is too bad and, you know, takes away our freedom to have whatever goddamned type of breakfast sandwich we want, we also think that the tyranny of the egg white has gone on too long. Egg yolks are the nectar of the gods, if you ask us, and they make literally everything they touch golden and delicious. Plus, the belief that eating yolks will raise cholesterol is misguided at best and apocryphal at worst. So, you know, embrace the yolk. Go whole egg. Live a little. And kiss your egg white-only omelette goodbye.
Follow Kristin Iversen on twitter @kmiversen
