Why would wouldn’t the egg cross the Atlantic? Because it’d be illegal on the other side. Due to US and European regulations, egg produced in one region would be illegal on the other. Why exactly is it though?
Eggs in America are required to be washed before selling them to the public. In Europe, they are required NOT to be washed or cleaned in any way. Yes, that means that an European egg could contain traces of chicken poop.
Why would Europe not want eggs to be washed or cleaned? The head of the British egg council says that it’s because it promotes cleaner farms. That is, a farmer knows it must produce clean eggs so that people buy them.
The USDA, however, thinks that no matter how clean a farm is, you can still get traces of chicken manure on your egg shells and if you touch something else, you might catch something.