Internet Colors - Set of 1035

13. Eggshell Color 324 - #F0EAD6

An eggshell is the outer covering of a hard-shelled egg and of some forms of eggs with soft outer coats. Bird eggshells contain calcium carbonate and dissolve in various acids, including the vinegar used in cooking. The US food industry generates 150,000 tones of shell waste a year.

The bird egg is a fertilized (or, in the case of some birds (such as chickens) possibly unfertilized) gamete located on the yolk surface and surrounded by albumen, or egg white. The albumen in turn is surrounded by two shell membranes (inner and outer membranes) and then the eggshell. The chicken eggshell is 95-97% calcium carbonate crystals, which are stabilized by a protein matrix.

In an average laying hen, the process of shell formation takes around 20 hours. Pigmentation is added to the shell by papillae lining the oviduct, coloring it any of a variety of colors and patterns depending on species. Since eggs are usually laid blunt end first, that end is subjected to most pressure during its passage and consequently shows the most color