Dairy products : Dairy products, or dairy products, are the milks or the food transformations obtained thanks to the milk. When there is processing, the most used milk is milk from cow, but we also use the milk of goat, sheep, camel, yak, buffalo… Their introduction into the human diet after weaning dates back to the Neolithic revolution.
The consumption of dairy products was originally mainly present in European (and more widely Western), Middle Eastern, Sahelian / Sudanese, East African, Indian, Tibetan, Mongolian and Central Asian cuisine and much less in the East Asian, Native American and Equatorial African cuisine. However, it has experienced considerable growth worldwide since the early 1950s, particularly in East Asia (China, Japan Korea, etc.) where these products were traditionally less consumed. However, it remains low in equatorial Africa. Dairy products are the essential intake of vitamin B12 for vegetarians. Conversely, vegans, who exclude dairy products from their diet, must resort to supplementation.
Dairy products are mainly used in human food, either directly or as ingredients in pastry, biscuits, cold meats, cheese, but also in animal feed (powdered milk for calves, whey for pigs). Dairy products are, in general, perishable foodstuffs and from producer to consumer, the cold chain must be respected so that these products remain edible. These foods are generally perceived to be good for you.
Synonymous, the term "dairy" is seldom used in everyday life in France: neither in supermarket shelves, nor in restaurants, nor in the dairy industry, nor by milk producers, nor in the terminology of the European Commission.
Milk is produced from breeding, it is mainly processed by the dairy industry. In the EU, in 2011, the distribution of these products from milk cow were from:
- cheese 44%
- milks 16%
- butters 16%
- crème fraîche, lait en poudre, yoghurt, and other fresh products 24%.

Egg : An egg is an organic body, spherical or oblong, produced and laid by most multicellular animals, especially female birds.
Protected by a shell, it contains the germ of an embryo and food reserves. The word "egg", without any other mention, designates exclusively the chicken egg; the other marketed eggs are obligatorily sold with the mention of origin of the animal: quail, duck, goose, plover, lapwing. Ostrich or crocodile eggs are exotic rarities. Turtle egg yolk, consumed throughout the tropical belt, has a white that does not coagulate, even at high temperatures.
History of the egg: Thanks to its nutritional qualities and to the diversity of its uses, the egg was very early part of the human diet in all latitudes. It has always been associated with rites and traditions.
In the Middle Ages, it was widely consumed and, as in ancient Rome, the shell was crushed on one's plate to prevent evil spirits from hiding there.
The egg was forbidden, as "fat", during Lent and banished during Good Friday, hence its blessing on Holy Saturday and its appearance in large numbers on the markets on Easter day, which gave birth to the tradition. today. The yellow was then called "hub", and the white "none".
Composition: In a 60 g chicken egg, the shell weighs 7 g; limestone and porous, it is lined with a membrane which, at the most rounded top, leaves a space called the "air chamber", which increases in volume as the egg ages (the less fresh the egg, the closer it floats. from the surface into a pot of water). White (35 g), a translucent mass of water and albumin, contains half of the 14% protein in the egg. The yolk (18 g) contains the germ (visible if the egg is fertilized, which does not prevent it from being edible), as well as the rest of the proteins and all the lipids, in particular lecithin (phosphorus fats) ; it also contains iron, sulfur and vitamins A, B, D and E.
The egg is a perfectly balanced and nourishing food, relatively low in energy (76 Kcal or 318 kJ per 100 g), because it is low in sugar, and contains all the amino acids essential for humans. It is easily digested if it is not associated with too fatty preparations.
Varieties and qualities: a red egg is neither better nor more "natural" than a white egg, generally smaller and less solid, but easier to see, because its shell is thin and not opaque. The farm egg (sometimes dirty) is not preferable to the farm egg; always devoid of germ, the latter keeps better. The color of the yolk has no relation to the quality of the egg, and any traces of blood, undoubtedly due to the start of fertilization, in the white or the yolk have no effect on its quality. An “extra” egg can be kept for a maximum of 3 weeks, in the cooler part of the refrigerator, tip down and the shell unwashed (so as not to be permeable to odors). A hard-boiled egg can be kept for 4 days unshelled, 2 days shelled; a raw egg yolk can be kept for 24 hours; a raw white, even in a preparation, from 6 to 12 hours. Finally, fresh, broken and beaten eggs can be frozen in special boxes.
The sale of eggs within the European Community is governed by a directive which provides for their classification according to physical criteria - category A (or “fresh eggs”), B (or “second quality” or “downgraded”; eggs intended for companies in the industry), and "washed eggs" - and depending on the weight - XL (very large: at least 73 g), L (large: from 63 to 73 g excluded), M (medium: from 53 to 63 g excluded) and S (small: less than 53 g) -, as well as precise labeling rules.
Mandatory information, which must appear on the packaging or be displayed near eggs sold in bulk, include the identification of the producer, the distinguishing number of the packing center, the grade and weight category, the date of durability. minimum (followed by storage recommendations), the rearing method ("eggs from hens reared in the open air", "on the ground" or "in a cage") and, where appropriate, the indication "washed eggs". The date of minimum durability is limited to 28 days after laying. The qualifier "extra" or "extra fresh" must be followed by the words "until" and two series of numbers indicating the 7th day following that of packaging or the 9th day following that of laying.