Comparison · Standards and regulation
What are the egg grading rules in Brazil, Europe and the US?
The three rules cover the same defects, but with different terms and criteria. RIISPOA sorts eggs into Classes A and B and requires candling. The EU regulation sets the Class A characteristics, including air cell height and weight grades. The US 7 CFR 57.1 defines terms such as check and leaker. The table compares each topic only with what each cited text says.
Updated · 4 min read
Which terms does each rule use for the same defects?
The three rules cover the same defects, but with different terms and criteria. The table shows what each cited text says about each topic. Where the cited text does not cover a topic, the cell says so and is not filled from another source.
| Topic | Brazil (RIISPOA) | EU (2023/2465) | US (7 CFR 57.1) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shell | Shell and cuticle of normal shape, smooth, clean and intact (art. 225, I) | Shell and cuticle of normal shape, clean and undamaged (art. 3(1)(a)) | Clean and sound shell egg: free of adhering dirt and not cracked or broken |
| Cracked egg (check) | Clean and cracked, with intact shell membrane: industrial processing as quickly as possible (art. 227) | Not defined in the cited text | Shell broken or cracked, with shell membranes intact and contents not leaking |
| Leaker | Shell and membranes broken: unfit for human consumption (art. 500, VII) | Not defined in the cited text | Crack or break in the shell and membranes, with contents exposed or free to exude |
| Dirty egg | External dirt from faecal material makes the egg unfit (art. 500, V); Class A requires a clean shell (art. 225, I) | Clean shell (art. 3(1)(a)); foreign matter not permissible (art. 3(1)(f)) | Unbroken shell with adhering dirt or foreign material |
| Air cell | Up to 6 mm high and stationary, for Class A (art. 225, II) | Up to 6 mm high and stationary; for extra eggs, up to 4 mm (art. 3(1)(b)) | Not defined in the cited text |
| Yolk | Visible when candled only as a shadow, with an apparent outline (art. 225, III) | Visible on candling only as a shadow, without a clear outline, returning to centre when turned (art. 3(1)(c)) | Not defined in the cited text |
| Classes | A and B (art. 224); Class B goes only to industrial processing (art. 226, sole paragraph) | Class A and Class B; an egg that no longer meets Class A is downgraded to B; an egg not marked within 10 days of laying is Class B (art. 3(2)) | Not defined in the cited text |
| Washing | Banned for dirty cracked eggs used in egg products (art. 228) | Class A eggs may not be washed or cleaned, before or after grading, except as provided (art. 4(1)) | Not defined in the cited text |
| Weight | Weight grading follows the RTIQ (art. 224, sole paragraph) | XL: 73 g or more; L: 63 g to under 73 g; M: 53 g to under 63 g; S: under 53 g (art. 5(1)) | Not defined in the cited text |
On internal quality, the white and the germ follow the same criteria in Brazil (art. 225, IV and V) and in the EU (art. 3(1)(d) and (e)). The cited US text does not cover those characteristics.
How does Brazil treat a cracked egg and a leaker?
In Brazil, the fate of an egg with a broken shell depends on two things: whether the shell membranes are intact and whether the shell is clean. A check that is clean, with intact membranes, goes to industrial processing as quickly as possible (art. 227). When the shell and membranes break, it becomes a leaker and is unfit for human consumption (art. 500, VII).
The US marks the same boundary: the check keeps its membranes, and the leaker breaks them (7 CFR 57.1). A dirty egg that is also cracked may not be washed or used in egg products (art. 228). The disposal guide explains the procedure, and the cracked eggs guide shows how to identify them.
Which differences matter most in practice?
The first is weight. The EU sets weight grades in the regulation itself (art. 5(1)), while RIISPOA leaves weight grading to the RTIQ (art. 224, sole paragraph).
The second is washing. The EU regulation bars washing or cleaning Class A eggs before or after grading, except as provided (art. 4(1)). In the cited RIISPOA text the rule is narrower: it bans washing dirty cracked eggs destined for egg products (art. 228). There is no equivalent general ban in the cited text, so check the current Brazilian text before applying the EU rule in Brazil.
The third is how defects are defined. 7 CFR 57.1 defines check, leaker and dirty egg precisely, but it does not set the air cell and yolk limits that RIISPOA and the EU regulation fix. Anyone selling to the US has to map an internal grading scheme onto those terms, not copy limits from another rule.
What do these rules not say?
None of the three texts defines the inspection method, the camera or the accuracy of a line. RIISPOA requires candling in egg establishments (art. 223, II). The EU and US texts cited here do not create that obligation, so in Brazil a camera does not replace candling. The full comparison is in candling or computer vision.
The rules state the limit but not how to measure it. An air cell of up to 6 mm, for example, is a quality criterion; how to measure it in practice is a choice of method. What the Vigiovo camera measures, and what it leaves out, is explained in how it works.
This guide summarises the cited text. It does not replace reading the rule in force or taking advice from the establishment's technical manager.
Frequently asked questions
Do the US and the EU accept a cracked egg as Class A?
- Not in the texts checked. The EU requires a shell of normal shape, clean and undamaged for Class A (art. 3(1)(a)). The US defines a check, with a broken shell and intact membranes (7 CFR 57.1), but in the cited text it is not classed as Class A.
What is the difference between a check and a leaker?
- In a check the shell is broken or cracked, but the membranes are intact and the contents do not leak. In a leaker the shell and membranes are broken and the contents are exposed or free to exude (7 CFR 57.1). In Brazil this difference decides the egg's destination (art. 227 and art. 500, VII).
Is candling mandatory in Brazil and in the European Union?
- In Brazil, yes. RIISPOA requires egg establishments to carry out candling (art. 223, II). The EU and US texts cited here do not create that obligation, so check the rule in force for each market.
Sources
- Decreto nº 9.013/2017 (RIISPOA), Presidência da República (Brasil)
- Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/2465, marketing standards for eggs, EUR-Lex
- 7 CFR § 57.1 Definitions (Inspection of Eggs), U.S. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations
How Vigiovo helps
Vigiovo grades eggs on the conveyor as clean, dirty, cracked or unverified, in real time, with deterministic computer vision: every decision comes with the measurements behind it, on an ordinary CPU.