In a perfect world everyone would have a limitless food budget.
Unfortunately we do not live in a perfect world. I am not absolutist or
elitist in my paleo-diet thinking and so I am free to consider some basic
economics when thinking about food and nutrition.

I like these Eggland's Best eggs. Eggland's Best eggs are unique and better
in my view, largely because they are a better source of Omega 3 and vitamin
E than ordinary eggs. They are superior to ordinary eggs for those reasons.
But do I really prefer them at $1.70 per dozen? That isn't so clear. $1.70
is not a terrible price for a dozen eggs but it is very high relative to
ordinary eggs. I know I can get Omega 3 and vitamin E from other sources.

Animal protein is by far the most important nutritional ingredient of eggs
for me and for many other people, and ordinary eggs at the ordinary price
are a very economical source of animal protein. I see no reason to think the
protein molecules in Eggland's Best eggs are any different than the protein
molecules in ordinary eggs. The protein content is probably nearly identical
between the different brands. At least I have seen no product claims to the
contrary.

For $1.70 I could buy one dozen Eggland's Best eggs and get approximately
75.6 grams of protein. Or I could buy 2.43 dozen ordinary eggs for the same
$1.70 and get a whopping 183.6 grams of protein. In the latter case I would
be able to eat almost three times more eggs. In real-world terms I could
feed the same amount of healthy animal protein to almost three times as many
hungry children.

From the standpoint of protein, then, ordinary eggs are clearly the better
value. Non-absolutists who can think in terms of economics might therefore
choose to buy ordinary eggs for protein and something like tuna for Omega 3.

-gts