The Chinese are known all over the world for their ability to make fakes, very similar to the original. They copy not only clothes, shoes, pictures, but also, more recently, eggs.

The unique food counterfeit is so similar to the original source that it is not so easy to recognize the deception. Let's figure out how not to fall for the bait of scammers.

Artificial chicken eggs are a dummy that not only will not be beneficial, but can cause irreparable harm to health.

In order to save money for the manufacture of such pacifiers, the Chinese use cheap ingredients - potassium carbonate, gelatin, potassium alginate and food grade calcium chloride. According to the composition, it is clear that the body does not need such ingredients at all and, moreover, are dangerous.

A lucrative illegal business brings profit to Chinese entrepreneurs every day, which is not surprising - the cost of producing artificial food is minimal.

In China, you can find artificial products in the markets and stores of many large cities, but not so long ago, counterfeit products have penetrated into Russia. This means that you should be vigilant and carefully examine the packaging and the eggs themselves before buying.

The following signs will help you recognize a fake:

1. The smoothness of the shell. Fake eggs usually do not have roughness, however, this point may not always help, since the differences from real shells can be very slight.
2. Uniformity of yolk and protein. You can only see this after you break the egg. Both yolk and white are made from the same material, so they are a single whole.
3. In a hard-boiled egg, the yolk will not acquire a blue tint, as it happens with a natural one. Also, it will not crumble, but on the contrary, it will become jelly-like. The protein will acquire a yellowish tint.
4. The protein is not homogeneous, it can fall apart.
5. An undercooked egg has a clear, gelatinous consistency.

Unfortunately, you won't notice any strange taste or other noticeable differences when frying, as the Chinese add seasoning and enhance the flavor with MSG.

How the Chinese make artificial eggs

The general scheme for the manufacture of such a product is quite simple.

1. First, potassium carbonate is dipped in water and dissolved. It turns out a mass that looks like a protein. Gelatin, alum and benzoic acid are added to it.
2. To get a mass similar to the yolk, citric acid and a little pigment are added to the same composition to give a yellow color.
3. The yolk mass is placed in a mold and in a solution with potassium carbonate to obtain a film on the surface. Shake the mold slightly to round the yolk. After an hour, the mass will harden. It remains to take it out, rinse it with water and dry it.
4. The yolk is immersed in a protein mixture and again removed in a solution with potassium. The finished egg is covered with a shell by dipping it in a solution of gypsum powder, paraffin and potassium carbonate. After drying, a coating is formed on the egg that imitates the shell.

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Can I eat them

Eating this "product" is highly discouraged, since its nutritional value is zero. It does not contain any useful substances and, moreover, if consumed regularly, it can cause serious damage to health.

Doctors warn that the ingredients in artificial eggs can:

• cause memory loss, blindness,
• slow down mental and physical development in children,
• excite the nervous system,
• lead to allergic reactions.

If you see eggs in a store at a suspiciously low price, do not skimp on your health - perhaps in front of you is that very dangerous fake from the Middle Kingdom.

The fact that recently in our grocery stores instead of products it is not clear what is being sold is well known. Residents of cities today are practically unaccustomed to normal food. Therefore, it is not surprising that bad luck to bump into fake eggs today is quite possible.

The Chinese have learned to counterfeit a product that would seem impossible to counterfeit - chicken eggs. The technology of this scam is as follows (including the terms translated from Chinese, so some inaccuracies are possible).

Ingredients: calcium and potassium carbonates benzoic acid, potassium alginate, paraffin, gypsum powder, citric acid, potassium alum, calcium chloride, gelatin, food coloring.

1. Potassium carbonate is dissolved in warm water.

2. With constant stirring, add gelatin, benzoic acid, and then alum to the potassium salt. It turned out to be a protein.

3. To create the yolk in the above components, add a yellow dye and citric acid.

4. The "yolk" is poured into a mold.

5. The mold is dipped into a potassium carbonate solution. In this case, the form is slightly shaken. This enables the yolk to become spherical.

6. The "yolk" is kept in potassium carbonate for about an hour. Then the form with the yolk is taken out, rinsed with water and allowed to dry.

7. Then the dried yolk is placed in a protein mold and the whole procedure is repeated with a potassium carbonate solution.

8. Then on the thread "egg" is dipped in a mixture of paraffin, gypsum powder and calcium carbonate. It turns out the shell.

So how are Chinese eggs made? Video

Can a fake Chinese egg be distinguished from a real one?

It is believed that practically not, except that the shell of the fake is a little more shiny, and the yolk and white after breaking the egg form a homogeneous mixture after a while.

However, over time, the technology for the production of fake eggs is becoming more and more perfect. It is simply impossible to distinguish a fake in a boiled and fried form.

I don’t want to believe this, but the media scare readers by the fact that such, if I may say so, “eggs” can sometimes already be found on sale in the Far East, in the regions bordering China. Let's try to figure out if this is true.

The components for the production of counterfeit eggs are:

• calcium carbonate,
• potassium carbonate,
• potassium alginate,
• potassium alum,
• calcium chloride
• benzoic acid,
• paraffin,
• gypsum,
• citric acid
• gelatin,
• food coloring.

The technological process looks like this. First, potassium carbonate is diluted in warm water. Then it is mixed with potassium salts, gelatin, benzoic acid and alum. As a result of the combination of these substances, a "protein" is obtained.

To obtain the yolk, citric acid and yellow food coloring are added to the same ingredients. After that, the resulting "yolk" is poured into a mold and immersed in a potassium carbonate solution. At the same time shake it slightly so that the "yolk" becomes round. It is kept in this solution for about an hour, then taken out, rinsed and allowed to dry a little.

After the "yolk" has dried, it is dipped into a mold for "protein" and the same action is again performed with a solution of potassium carbonate. Then the resulting "egg" is placed in a mixture of paraffin, gypsum and calcium carbonate, resulting in the formation of a shell.

A natural chicken egg consists of egg white and yolk. The yolk contains proteins, fats and cholesterol. Protein is 90% water and 10% protein.

Russian Gosstandart obliges producers to label each egg released by the poultry farm. This marking consists of letters and numbers.

The first sign indicates the permissible storage period:

• "D" - dietary egg, implementation period 7 days,
• "C" - table egg, implementation period 25 days.

The second character in the marking means the egg category:

• "3" - the third category, weight up to 44.9 g,
• "2" - the second category, weight up to 54.9 g,
• "1" - the first category, weight up to 64.9 g,
• "O" - selected egg, weight up to 74.9 g,
• "B" - the highest category, weight over 75 g.

Why are they faked?

The answer is simple: this is a very profitable business. The prime cost of artificial eggs is no more than 25% of the cost of real eggs. At the same time, their shelf life is very long, it is almost unlimited, because chemicals do not deteriorate.

China, the United States of America and India are the leaders in the production of chicken eggs in the world. But Mexico ranks first in egg consumption, where the average resident eats 1.5 eggs daily. Russia is in 12th place in this list.

It is believed that counterfeits are most often found in large Chinese cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou. There they can be found in local bazaars.

Basically, such fakes do not go to retail stores. They are used in the industrial production of semi-finished products, and are also used for cooking in cafes, restaurants and other catering establishments.

China is famous for its unusual ways of processing food. The huge number of the population forces its inhabitants to invent all new ways of eating food, which in other countries is considered inedible.

For example, in China, duck eggs are considered a delicacy, aged for 100 days in a mixture of water, tea, salt, potassium carbonate and burnt oak wood. And in one of the Chinese provinces, eggs boiled in the urine of boys under 10 years old are considered especially tasty.

In Southeast Asia, duck eggs with an almost formed fruit inside are known as a special delicacy ...

It cannot be ruled out that some of the fake eggs end up in Russia. For example, the media reported that in one of the districts of the Perm Territory, a resident bought fake eggs at the local market. Is it true or? Officials have not confirmed this information.

An important question: how to distinguish them

The technology for the production of artificial eggs is constantly being improved, so they look like real ones. At first glance, they are difficult to recognize. Particularly bad is that it is difficult to distinguish a fake boiled or fried.

But still, an attentive person can do it. First, the fake eggs are rounder than the real ones. Secondly, their shells are shinier and rougher. Thirdly, if you break a fake egg, then the yolk and white will turn into a homogeneous mixture over time. But this will not happen with a real egg: if you break it carefully, the yolk and white will retain their shape separately. Another difference: if you set fire to a fake, its shell burns. And in real eggs, it is non-flammable.

Another important sign. If you hard-boil a fake, then peel it off and put it in the refrigerator for a few hours, it will behave differently from a natural product. The yolk will not turn blue around the edges (as is the case with natural eggs). It will not crumble into grains, like natural, but will retain its elastic structure. The protein will also be different: its color will turn yellowish, and the structure will fall apart.

After boiling, the fakes turn into a ball with a rubbery taste and smell. It is clear that the chemicals they contain have nothing to do with natural food. In particular, the potassium alum contained in them, with constant use, can seriously damage human health.

The use of pseudo eggs in children's nutrition is especially dangerous!

Rospotrebnadzor is the federal service of the Russian Federation for supervision in the field of consumer rights protection and human well-being (in fact, the consumer prosecutor's office). The service supervises consumer protection, as well as sanitary and epidemiological control. Works on requests from citizens. There is a telephone hotline where any consumer can contact and report violations. The service responds promptly and efficiently to citizens' requests.

At one time, I remember the information that the Chinese began to counterfeit chicken eggs. Of course, you can expect anything from the Chinese, but eggs are the height of originality. And the other day I found on the Chinese Internet the story of a Chinese man who worked in an office for the production of artificial eggs. He tells how they are made and how beneficial it is. According to the Chinese, the technology for the production of artificial eggs has reached such perfection that it is quite difficult to distinguish them from real ones in appearance.
The following components are used for their production. I give chemical terms in translation from Chinese, so I'm not completely sure if they are correct. For the shell, calcium carbonate (碳酸钙) is used, for the yolk and protein - potassium alginate (海藻酸钠), potassium alum (明矾), gelatin (明胶), food calcium chloride (食用 氯化钙) and pigment (色素).
First, dissolve potassium carbonate in warm water, obtaining a protein-like mass. Then, stirring, add gelatin, benzoic acid (苯甲酸), alum (白矾) to it. The resulting mixture will replace the protein. For the yolk, the same mixture is used, but with the addition of citric acid and yellow pigment.
The yolk mixture is poured into a special mold and placed in a solution of potassium carbonate. As a result of the reaction, a film forms on the surface of the yolk. To make the yolk spherical and evenly processed with a solution, shake the form. When the surface of the yolk hardens enough, the yolk is left in solution for an hour. Then they are taken out, washed with water and dried.
The resulting yolk is placed in a form for protein, poured with a protein mixture, and in the same way, by placing it in a solution of potassium carbonate, a ready-made egg is created, which remains to be covered with a shell.
To do this, using a special thread, the egg is dipped several times in a solution of paraffin (石蜡), gypsum powder (石膏 粉) and calcium carbonate, which, after drying, forms a shell.
The main differences between an artificial egg and a natural one: 1. The shell is slightly more shiny and rough. But the differences are quite insignificant, so it is not easy to identify an artificial egg by its appearance. 2. The white and yolk of a broken artificial egg after a while form a homogeneous mass, as they are made of the same material.
One kilogram of natural eggs costs six and a half yuan. And 55 feni (0.55 yuan) is spent on the production of a kilogram of artificial ones. The shop in which the Chinese worked made a thousand eggs a day, with a net income of over one hundred yuan. (100 yuan = 450 rubles).
Their production is becoming more and more perfect both in terms of mimicry for real eggs, and in terms of cost, which is 25% of the store price. Lacking any nutritional value, fake eggs pose a serious health hazard from the harmful chemicals they contain. The photographs below show that the broken fake egg is very similar to the real one, but its yolk has a stronger shell, so it can be easily held with fingers. As for the rest, there are practically no differences. If the yolk is broken, then in appearance it is indistinguishable from the real one. The shell is also very skillfully made, there is even an air membrane in its lower part. It is almost impossible to distinguish a boiled egg from a real one.

They learned to perfectly copy clothes and accessories, gadgets and paintings, architectural structures and entire cities. But if, thanks to the craving for fakes, artificial eggs appear on the market, you should think about your own safety.

The talent of the inhabitants of the Middle Kingdom in the field of counterfeiting food is not news at all. You may have already read about unique food fakes, including glowing pork and cardboard buns.

It would seem that making an egg is much more difficult. But no! You can hardly distinguish artificial from chicken.

Real eggs contain a whole storehouse of nutrients: fats, proteins, glucose, carbohydrates, minerals, many enzymes, as well as a set of vitamins (A, E, D, group B).

There is also cholesterol that does not harm human health. That is why experts advise eating one egg a day, and this product is considered indispensable in the children's menu.

A fake egg is an absolute "dummy", there is nothing useful in it. The shell is made from gypsum, calcium and paraffin. White and yolk are formed from a mixture of gelatin and calcium alginate, with the addition of pigments.

Taste this piece of art several times and the consequences can be unpredictable. Long-term use negatively affects the nervous system. Children may experience excessive mobility, while mental development is inhibited.

How is it done

The fake eggs are made so skillfully that they even recreate the air membrane at the bottom of the shell. You won't find fault! They start with the yolk. The chemical mixture is dyed yellow with pigments and dipped into a mold to make it spherical.

All this chemical mash is immersed in potassium carbonate, so a protective film is formed and in the future the artificial yolk will not spread. In another form, the yolk is enveloped in protein.

Cover the workpiece with an artificial shell, dipping it several times in a solution of paraffin, potassium carbonate and gypsum powder.

Dried and done! Outwardly, an egg made by a craftsman is no different from that produced by a chicken.

The meaning of fake

If someone agrees to spend time on painstaking manipulation of chemicals, look for benefits. Counterfeiting chicken eggs in the Middle Kingdom has long outgrown amateur experiments and turned into a very profitable business.

It turns out that the cost of making a fake does not exceed 25% of the price of a real egg. You can put them up for sale a little cheaper than market value and make great money!

This, of course, is what they do. Market visitors in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other large cities in China risk buying a dozen or so "chemical" eggs anyway.

Do you think you shouldn't worry, let the Chinese worry? In vain. Fake eggs are already sold not only in the border cities of Russia, they are successfully disguised in the markets in Siberia, appear in the Perm Territory and reach the central regions.

How to recognize

A tired buyer after a hard day at work will definitely not notice anything suspicious. Unless the price can be a pleasant surprise, but this is not a reason to accuse someone of falsification. However, if you carefully compare two eggs, fake and natural, you can still find some differences.

Have you noticed that a hard-boiled egg that has been in the refrigerator for about 6 hours has a slightly blue yolk? So with the "chemical" this will not happen. The yolk will not crumble, but will become more jelly-like, but the white will turn slightly yellow and may crack into pieces.

When frying, you will not see any differences and the dish will not have a strange taste. Especially if in China you are served an omelet, generously seasoned with spices.

Selling surrogate food products is prohibited, but this does not stop entrepreneurs who want to make money. There are a lot of people in China who have to save on food, so there will always be a demand for cheap eggs. It is sad that such products are safely trickling across the border and may end up on our table. Well, let's be careful.