5 August 2024

3 minute read

By: Global Ag Media

North America

The American Egg Board last week announced a new "Breaking Records, Breaking Eggs" pledge celebrating the success and hard work of US athletes who are breaking athletic records with a donation pledge of 1 million eggs to local food banks across the US this summer, according to a press release. 

The Breaking Records, Breaking Eggs pledge honours US athletes breaking American records and achieving other firsts in their sports by donating eggs to athletes' local hometown food banks, giving everyone the opportunity to break into the invaluable egg. Throughout the summer, the American Egg Board will select a dozen athletes who marked their athletic performance in France by breaking records in their individual sports -- because after all, records and eggs are meant to be broken. To ensure that athletes and their local communities have plentiful access to the nutritious benefits of eggs, America's egg farmers are committed to donating over 1 million eggs to food banks across the US this summer.

"America's egg farmers are incredibly proud of the records our US athletes are breaking this summer and know how important nutrition is for performance," says Emily Metz, president and CEO of the American Egg Board. "From cracking historic records to achieving monumental success for the US, we know many eggs were cracked for athletes in preparation of these moments and how critical our athletes' communities are to their journey. We're aware of how difficult access to high-quality protein, such as eggs, has been for many athletes while competing in Paris. To support the incredible moves of these athletes, we want to ensure their local communities have access to good sources of protein with a donation of over 1 million eggs."

Eggs are a complete source of protein with essential vitamins and minerals to support overall health, especially for athletes. Eggs contribute a variety of key nutrients to the diet to help support athletes in their performance. The high-quality protein from eggs helps maintain and repair muscle while supporting bone health. Research indicates that eating 20 to 30 grams of protein from foods that include the amino acid leucine, such as eggs, may promote muscle repair after exercise. Eggs are one of the only foods that naturally has vitamin D (1 mcg per large egg), which along with calcium is vital for athletes to maintain skeletal health.

"Eggs are an incredibly versatile, nutritious and convenient food to use at any meal and they are found in 90% of American refrigerators," says Jen Houchins, director of nutrition research at the American Egg Board. "Eggs are a nutritional powerhouse, with one egg containing 6 grams of high-quality protein and all nine essential amino acids, all for only 70 calories. Eggs are among the most requested foods at food pantries, and access to good sources of protein really matters. We're proud to donate eggs to local communities and ensure access to this high-quality protein."

America's egg farmers are committed to donating eggs across the country, with over 50 million eggs donated in 2023.