Yes they are. A friend in S. Dakota markets thousands to some larger chain groceries and also at some small c stores. He gets a premium price for them, some cartons are all blue or green and some are mixed, he uses a lot of the clear see thru cartons for the blu shell eggs. Normally the birds that make those blu/green shells are not great producers and the profit would be a real problem. my friend has bred a strain of very good producers breeding his Araucanas with white Leghorns; this makes a more nicely blue shell color also because the Leghorn has shell color inhibitor genes leaving the blue shell bluer.

Interesting. I never knew that anyone was selling them commercially. Nice way to introduce a little bit of chicken knowledge to the general public too. Although my expectations of people are so high, that I can also envision someone passing off only part of the story, referring to the birds which produced those eggs as simply Araucanas, further spreading the confusion.

That is really interesting, especially the part about crossing with a white leghorn to get a more blue egg. I have about two dozen Auracana hens (really Americauna, to be accurate) and use their eggs for my family. They're eggs are really more green than blue; pretty, but not usually blue. I'll try the leghorn cross and see if that works.

Here's what I think would be a cool idea: Raise a number of different heirloom breeds that produce different color eggs (Auracanas, Anconas, Welsummers, etc.) and package the mixed colors in a clear egg carton. Sell them as organic, free range eggs, but the big visual differentiator would be the wild mix of colors. With the proper label or brochure, you could also make it more appealing by touting that by buying the eggs, you're helping to sustain vanishing heirloom breeds.

Just an idea.

It will take several generations of selective breedings to make the more nicely blue shells I would expect. The shell with the green eggs is blue, green comes from the brown coating(ooporphryn)over the blue shell; the brown is cause by up to 13 genes,the theory is that the Legs have the brown color inhibiting genes thus they diminish the brown and the shell remains blue, the blue shell is solidly blue, not merely a coating. I think if I were to play with that project, I would begin with the hens which make the bluest shells and not use the others in breeding.
Actually Ameraucanas are supposed to make blue eggs, that is part of their breed standard. More breeders are beginning to apply selection for that trait. Of course some breeders wont bother to make the complete genotypical chicken and will settle for phenotype alone.

Most chickens that lay blue or green eggs are not Auracanas or even Ameraucanas, in the strictest of breed guidelines. They are properly called Easter Eggers, because they are technically mutts who have colored egg producing genes. Feed stores and large-scale hatcheries routinely label their chicks "Araucana", but these chicks are not really a specific breed, they are just chickens who lay colored eggs, "Easter Eggers".

It took me a while to accept that my beautiful hen "Fancy", bought from a bin labeled "Araucana", was not a show-quality chicken. She certainly is the most gorgeous hen in the eyes of every rooster we have ever had, LOL. She has characteristics of true Ameraucana chickens, such as the beard feathers and muff feathers, but she is almost certainly not a purebred Ameraucana, just because, feed stores just don't sell purebred Ameraucanas. (She was a store promotion freebie.) True Ameraucanas are purebreds.

Araucanas are really rare in the US, and are from South America originally. They are "rumpless", whatever that means. I've never seen one myself.

That said, Easter Eggers are just as good as their purebred cousins! They just aren't show-quality, that's all.

Read about these breeds on www.the-coop.org in "The Classroom" forum.

I don't sell my eggs, I give the extras away but I package them so you can see all the colors. People LOVE it! I got these cartons from eggcartons.com
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I have a few that lay pinkish eggs now too.

I mix various browns from tan to deep cinnamon brown (from my Marans) along with the green/blues from my "whatever-canas" in clear plastic cartons and label them "Beautiful Eggs"! They sell for 3 dollars a dozen. With only 17 hens laying I've been selling 6-7 dozen a week with no problem. Pays the chickens' costs and my morning indulgence at the coffee shop!

Here in Michigan the egg laws are awfully specific about cartons containing a single size of eggs. I don't have nearly enough hens to comply, so I just sell off my farm where the laws don't apply. I guess if you have hundreds of hens it's simple to size them -- my friends who buy the eggs like having a huge double-yolker next to a small one.

--Johanna

My local "health food store" said that when they tried to sell blue eggs, no one would buy them.
Its interesting that someone is selling thousand commercially.

My Ameraucanas are the poorest layers I have of all my breeds. I like the blue eggs personally, and its fun to have different colors mixed together.

Its true though, Ameraucanas only lay blue eggs, green & piny eggs come from Easter Eggers, but they are just as pretty, and probably more prolific.

M

My hens had a banner day today! All seven of them laid eggs. It was so exciting to reach my hand in and keep pulling them out of the nest. The funniest thing is that now they all use the same nest. It's hysterical to watch them line up one by one and wait their turn to go in. The reason they love this nest so much is because I hung a privacy curtain in front of it. Until now they really didn't have a favorite spot. I'm so glad it worked - it makes for an easier time finding the eggs. And anyway, who wouldn't want a little privacy?

Kellyfg: I loved your egg cartons so much I went to the same web site and bought some. I also got some of the old fashioned 3 x 4 style. Thanks for the idea.

jilly-no problem! I'm glad it was helpful!