The three-digit code (001\u2013365) on egg cartons marks the day of the year they were packed, while \u201cP\u201d numbers identify the processing plant and dates like \u201cSell By\u201d or \u201cBest By\u201d indicate inventory timing and peak quality rather than definitive safety. Because bacteria like *Salmonella* cannot be detected by sight, smell, or even the floating test\u2014which only reflects an egg\u2019s age\u2014safely managing eggs relies on keeping them in their carton at 40\u00b0F (4\u00b0C) or below for three to five weeks, avoiding cracked shells, cooking until yolks and whites are firm, and discarding any improperly stored or compromised eggs.READ MORE BELOW <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The three-digit code (001\u2013365) on egg cartons marks the day of the year they were packed, while \u201cP\u201d numbers identify the processing plant and dates like \u201cSell… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24041,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24040","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-story"],"yoast_head":"\n