The white strand on an egg yolk is the chalaza, and it is safe to eat

Many people who crack an egg and see a white, thread-like strand clinging to the yolk assume the egg has gone bad, or pick the strand out and throw it away. On 13 July 2026 Jagonews24, drawing on a report in The Indian Express, said nutritionists see no reason to worry. The strand is called the chalaza; it is a normal part of every egg, it is safe to eat, and it is often a sign that the egg is fresh.

University of Illinois Extension describes the chalazae as two twisted, whitish, cord-like structures on opposite sides of the yolk, whose job is to hold the yolk in the centre of the egg white, or albumen. Egg Farmers of Canada calls them a pair of spiral bands that anchor the yolk in the centre of the thick albumen. That anchoring keeps the yolk from sliding around when the egg is moved or transported.

In a University of Florida IFAS Extension publication, veterinarian Gary D. Butcher explains that chalazae are present in all eggs. They form when the cords of protein that make up the egg white are twisted as the yolk spirals down the hen's oviduct. In other words, the chalaza is not a foreign object but part of the egg white's own protein.

Many people take the white strand for a defect, a disease or the start of a chick. The Florida publication is clear that chalazae are a normal part of the egg and do not indicate disease or the presence of an embryo. Commercial eggs are infertile, so a chalaza is no sign of an embryo.

According to the nutritionists cited in The Indian Express report, eating the chalaza does no harm, and it has no negative effect on the taste, smell or nutritional value of the egg, so there is no need to remove it before cooking. Eggs should still be cooked properly: the Florida publication notes that cooking eggs and meats to 165 degrees Fahrenheit kills Salmonella and other microorganisms commonly found on them.

Egg Farmers of Canada says the fresher the egg, the more prominent the chalazae. It adds that a fresher egg has a stronger yolk membrane and a smaller air cell. University of Illinois Extension explains that the air cell forms as the contents contract on cooling and lose moisture, and that a high-quality egg has only a small one.

A 2007 egg quality handbook by the Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries and DSM Nutritional Products puts the chalaziferous layer, immediately surrounding the yolk, at 3 percent of the white. As eggs age, the yolk absorbs water from the white, its membrane enlarges and weakens and the yolk looks flat, while the thick white loses its protein structure and turns watery. High temperatures speed up the loss of internal quality.

So a clear white strand beside the yolk is usually a sign of a relatively fresh egg, and a thin, runny white mostly points to an older one. The report advised, however, that an egg which smells bad once cracked, or whose white is unusually thin or whose yolk has changed abnormally in colour or texture, is better not used.

Photo: Sauvagette / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sources: Jagonews24, The Indian Express, University of Illinois Extension, University of Florida IFAS Extension, Egg Farmers of Canada, Queensland Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries and DSM (The Poultry Site)