Shell eggs · The menu use changes the control

How to Receive and Store Shell Eggs in a Restaurant

A flat of eggs can pass a count and still fail the restaurant’s receiving rule. Shell condition, refrigeration, grade, supplier record, planned recipe, and whether the dish will be fully cooked all affect what happens next.

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Direct answer

Receive shell eggs only through the restaurant’s approved source and criteria. Health Canada advises choosing refrigerated eggs with clean, uncracked shells and refrigerating them promptly. Keep the carton or lot connection, rotate by the approved date rule, separate raw-egg handling from ready-to-eat food, and use pasteurized egg products for recipes that are not heated.

What this page covers

Raw shell eggs delivered to a restaurant
Receiving, refrigerated storage, prep, cooking, and rotation
Fully cooked and raw or lightly cooked menu uses

What it does not decide

Permission to buy ungraded eggs for a specific province
A local cooking or holding variance
A claim that a clean shell is free of Salmonella

Six controls from the delivery door to the plate

Step 1

Write the purchasing rule before delivery

The receiver cannot verify a standard that has never been defined.

1Name the approved supplier, grade or lawful product requirement, pack format, refrigeration condition, label or lot information, and rejection contact.
2Separate the rule for ordinary fully cooked recipes from any raw or lightly cooked use that calls for pasteurized egg products or another approved control.
3Confirm the provincial, territorial, and local food-premises requirements that apply to the source and menu use.

Step 2

Inspect the flat before it reaches storage

Count, temperature state, carton, and shell condition belong in the same receiving decision.

1Confirm the eggs arrived refrigerated, the package and supplier match the order, and the grade or required mark is present where applicable.
2Inspect a representative sample for clean, intact shells. Hold or reject cracked, leaking, dirty, damaged, unlabelled, or otherwise nonconforming product under the approved rule.
3Record date, time, supplier, invoice or lot, quantity, observed condition, decision, credit or replacement, and receiver initials.

Step 3

Preserve the carton and the cold chain

Loose eggs lose both physical protection and the record that identifies them.

1Move accepted eggs promptly into the approved refrigerator and keep them protected in their carton or approved container.
2Store them away from contamination and crushing, with the identifying information linked to the batch until the restaurant’s record-retention rule is satisfied.
3Rotate by the approved date and lot rule. Do not mix new eggs into an older unidentified flat.

Step 4

Assign eggs to a defined recipe path

The correct control depends on what the kitchen will do with the egg.

1Mark whether the batch is used for fully cooked dishes, baking, pooled egg mixtures, or a raw or lightly cooked preparation.
2Health Canada advises using pasteurized egg products in foods that are not heated, including examples such as icing, eggnog, or Caesar dressing.
3If the delivered product does not fit the approved recipe path, keep it out of that use instead of relying on an informal exception.

Step 5

Control cracking, cooking, and cross-contamination

A clean-looking shell can still carry bacteria.

1Crack eggs only when ready to use and keep shells, hands, utensils, work surfaces, and ready-to-eat food separated under the sanitation procedure.
2Health Canada advises cooking eggs and egg-based foods to an internal temperature of at least 74°C; follow any stricter approved process or local requirement.
3Clean and sanitize affected equipment and surfaces using the restaurant’s approved products, concentrations, contact times, and rinse requirements.

Step 6

Reconcile breakage, waste, and remaining stock

The close should reveal whether the control failed at receiving, storage, or prep.

1Record cracked-at-receipt, cracked-in-storage, prep breakage, temperature exception, expired rotation, returned dish, and unexplained variance separately.
2Keep any recalled or suspect lot on hold and use the restaurant’s recall response file rather than blending it into routine waste.
3Review recurring damage by supplier, delivery, storage position, handling step, and shift before changing the order or assigning responsibility.

Shift-ready files

Connect every flat to its condition and menu use

The PDF keeps a stable print layout. The UTF-8 CSV is editable for the restaurant’s approved process.

Download printable PDF Download UTF-8 CSV

Sources and limits

The official sources below support the visible claims. Always verify the scope with the authority responsible for the activity and jurisdiction.

Shell egg decisions that need a defined rule

Can a restaurant accept a few cracked eggs and discard only those shells?

Follow the restaurant’s approved receiving criteria and the applicable local rule. Health Canada advises choosing eggs with clean, uncracked shells. A receiver should not invent a partial-acceptance rule at the door.

Are Canada A eggs guaranteed free of Salmonella?

No. Grading checks quality and shell conditions, but Health Canada explains that Salmonella can be present even when an egg looks clean. Refrigeration, handling, sanitation, and cooking controls still matter.

Can shell eggs be used for Caesar dressing?

Health Canada advises using pasteurized egg products for foods that are not heated, including Caesar dressing. Confirm the recipe and local food-premises requirements before service.

What does Maxuod Shift do with this record?

It can schedule receiving and prep coverage and retain a shift note. It does not grade eggs, approve suppliers, set cooking rules, or decide whether a batch is safe.

Follow the egg into receiving and allergen control

Receiving and rejection log Allergen substitution approval Food recall response log