UK sales of eggs have topped £1 billion for the first time ever according to data released today by Noble Foods Group, the UK’s leading supplier of eggs and owner of brands such as the Happy Egg Company.

The egg market has grown with rapid consistency in recent years as the UK has woken up to the nutritional and health benefits that eggs offer at a very accessible price point.

Consumers are now eating more eggs, more frequently and in the last year alone Britons bought a total of 6.6 billion eggs. Over the last year, 96.1 percent of the UK population bought eggs, which is a higher figure than bought alcohol (90.9 percent), crisps (93.0 percent) and even toilet roll at (93.1 percent).

According to Noble there are a number of drivers of this change, including:

• Eggs becoming a highly desirable social media superstar, particularly when rich oozing yolks are paired with items such as the ubiquitous avocado toast (the hashtag #eggs has been used 9.5 million times on Instagram).
• Consumers seeking higher welfare eggs (free range grew 6.1 percent last year, organic grew 9 percent).
• Consumers seeking specialty eggs (such as heritage breeds, quail and duck eggs) which grew 33 percent over the last year.
• The versatility of eggs which can be both the hero and accompaniment of so many dishes spanning the whole day from breakfast to dinner, and appealing to all age groups
• The fact that, while eggs are gaining lots of attention for their health properties, currently only 15 percent of egg occasions are eaten purely for health reasons, meaning there’s plenty of room for growth as consumers become even more health conscious.

Noble Foods is the UK’s biggest egg company and supplies branded and own-brand eggs to most major retailers, as well as extensively through foodservice and manufacturing. In 2009, Noble created the Happy Egg Company brand, bringing free range eggs to an even wider audience. The brand, which is purchased by one in five Britons is now worth £65 million and growing faster than the total eggs market and the free range sector.

Veli Moluluo, Managing Director of Noble Foods’ Consumer Division says: “The egg industry has come on leaps and bounds over the last 20 years, with growth going into particular overdrive recently as eggs have become an on-trend item. Eggs are a fantastically healthy - not to mention delicious - food item and it’s great for the humble egg to finally be getting the recognition it deserves.”