Lets talk eggs

In the 2022-23 financial year, Australian egg farmers produced 6.68 billion eggs. Of these, 25% were supplied in Queensland generating more than $244 million in the state annually. Today, most of those 6.68 billion eggshells are treated as waste. But what if we looked at eggshells with a circular lens?

Eggshells are a highly sophisticated composite material, packed with valuable elements such as collagen, glucosamine and chondroitin. If we open our eyes to the value of eggshells, we discover that...

  1. A single eggshell contains approximately 380mg calcium per gram and 1 gram could provide 50% of an adult female’s daily requirement.

  2. Baked eggshells crushed into fine powder can work as a cheap alternative to store renewable energy

  3. Glycosaminoglycans, which are proteins found in eggshells, can be extracted to make plastic alternatives.

  4. Eggshell membrane powder can be used in pharmaceutical applications, for example to alleviate joint pain and inflammation.

In a circular economy, there is no such thing as waste...only wasted value!

Projects RCOE