We listed on the NASDAQ in 2020, which means anyone can buy VITL shares. Blackrock and other investment groups own shares, as do our crew (this is what we call employees), who receive annual grants regardless of title or seniority, from our most junior team members to our CEO. If you want to better understand some of our core financials, look at our investor page. It’s all open to the public.

Our pasture-raised standards have not changed— they’ve just scaled across hundreds more family farms and communities. But across our business, the standards actually have changed – they’ve gotten higher. For example, our egg washing and packing facility in Springfield, Missouri, has continually reduced waste and supported more jobs in the community. We’re also scaling more regenerative farming practices across all of our farms, which we committed to in 2023. You can read more about how we’re raising the standards in our latest impact report.

Pasture-raised eggs are laid by hens that can spend their days outdoors roaming the pastures as they please. Our hens enjoy at least 108 square feet of pasture each, with plenty of fresh air and sunshine year-round. This outdoor access gives the girls a lifestyle they deserve, with freedom to forage through rotated pastures, feasting on a natural buffet of grasses, bugs, and grub alongside their essential feed. The girls roost together in the barn overnight, where they feel safe from predators. In certain situations, when the girls’ health and safety are at risk, we may need to keep them temporarily indoors. We make these decisions based on state and local guidance, as well as guidance from our veterinary partners and Certified Humane®, which audits our pasture-raised animal welfare practices. These situations are only in the event of a significant risk to the girls, such as a weather or health emergency.

It’s like a four-leaf clover, but tastier! Double yolks usually come from young flocks that are just beginning to lay. Until the hens get the timing just right and learn how to lay, two eggs may merge together in the hen’s oviduct, meaning she’ll lay one large egg with two yolks hidden inside. Don’t be surprised if you see multiple eggs with double yolks in a single carton – they all came from the same young flock.

All of our farms are in a U.S. region we like to call The Pasture Belt™ which includes: Kansas, Missouri, Kentucky, Arkansas, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and West Virginia where pasture-raised eggs can be produced year-round.

While it’s true that a hen’s ear-lobe color will tell you what color their eggs will be, that’s not the reason behind the color. An egg’s color is determined by the breed. Most of our hens are Hy-line Browns – and it’s in their genetics to lay brown eggs.

Our price reflects our commitment to Conscious Capitalism and enables us to create long-term value with all of our stakeholders. We work with the best family farmers in the business, we believe they deserve fair pay for their hard work, and we want to pay them a competitive wage. We also have around 600 crew across our Egg Central Station and remote workforce who work hard every day to raise the standards. Our retail customers (like your local grocery store) need to run a profitable business to continue serving their local communities. And shareholders deserve a fair return on their investment. In fact, if you want to know more about our commitments to investors, take a look at our latest commitments, which we announced in December – it’s all available on our investor page.

A hen’s age is the main factor that determines egg size. Young hens that are just beginning to lay tend to produce smaller eggs, and, ironically, a few jumbos as well. To keep your cartons consistent, we do our best to grade out the eggs so you only get eggs of a certain size. Because our eggs are natural and not from a factory farm, you may see some variation in egg size.

We believe our eggs taste so good because our pasture-raised hens live happy, healthy lives! Our girls’ fresh-air lifestyle is full of foraging and feasting on natural goodness, which shines through in every egg. If you’ve never cracked open a pasture-raised egg, your culinary life is about to change.

Our butter cartons are recyclable. The wrappers are not compostable due to their wax coating. We’re exploring alternatives to ensure our packaging is as recyclable or compostable as possible.

All of the family farms in our supply network provide outdoor pasture access to their girls during the warmer months, an average of 200 days a year. During the colder months, the cows spend their days in a warm, comfortable barn with plenty of room to express their natural behaviors and socialize with their herd. During all four seasons, the girls have plenty of room in the barns to eat, drink, and lie down in a clean, dry space.

Yes! Family farms are an essential part of our mission to bring ethically produced food to the table. The family farmers who produce our butter are located in the island of Ireland. Many of them have been multi-generational farms for decades. These family farmers share our passion for animal welfare, sustainable farming practices and are committed to continuous improvement.

Yes, lactic acid is a standard ingredient in Vital Farms’ unsalted butter. Lactic acid is a natural byproduct of the fermentation process and is commonly found in dairy foods such as yogurt and cheese.

The farmers who produce our butter share our passion for animal welfare. Those farmers’ cows spend their time grazing fresh pastures during the warm months, totalling to an average of 200 days a year. They’re able to express their natural behaviors, socialize with their herd, and have plenty of room to eat, drink, and lie down in a clean, dry space whenever they desire. They have plenty of water and food, which consists of 90% grass and 10% nutritionally balanced feed to promote good health and well-being. Finally, they are never given any growth hormones.

Though our general rule of thumb is six months in the fridge (a little longer if salted), our recommendation is to always enjoy our butter by the expiration date on the package and store it in the refrigerator. Check your butter packaging for an official date.

Dairy cows are normally milked twice a day (they can get uncomfortable otherwise). All of the farms that produce our butter use modern milking equipment and our dairy farmers use best practices and the highest standards to make milking time-efficient, enjoyable for the cows, and extremely clean to keep the cows healthy.

Our butter is not third-party certified by The Non-GMO Project. We rely on the farmers, most of whom are multi-generational dairy farmers, to know what is best for their land and herds.

The dairy cows that produce milk for Vital Farms butter eat a 90% grass diet. To ensure a well-rounded diet, farmers work with nutritionists for the remaining 10% to supply feed consisting of grain, vitamins and minerals to ensure a healthy and balanced blend of nutrients for the girls. We believe that a balanced diet for a dairy cow leads to premium high-butterfat milk and a healthy, happy cow!

Thanks for asking! Vital Farms Butter starts with cows who are pasture-raised on family farms during the warm months (that’s an average of 200 days a year!). Those four-legged ladies supply a rich cream to churn into something special. With 85% butterfat in our Unsalted Butter and 83% in our Salted Butter, we believe our rich and creamy butter can’t be beat.

Holsteins and Jerseys are the most common. These gorgeous girls transform grass, feed, and water into high-quality, high-butterfat milk, which we convert into cream that in turn, makes our high-quality butter.