Free range eggs aren't all they’re cracked up to be: the realities of factory farming render the phrase almost meaningless.

Unlike the term "USDA Organic," which can only be applied to eggs and other foods that meet specific guidelines set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the use of the term "free range" is far less strict.

Free Range Eggs, the Tooth Fairy, and Bigfoot

According to the USDA, any hens that have regular access to an outdoor area -- a patch of cement or a small, fenced gravel yard -- can be called a free range chicken.

Even if a hen gets just five minutes of outdoor time a day, she qualifies as a free range chicken.

But the USDA does not recognize the term "free range" as applying to eggs, only to poultry -- in other words, save your egg money. Likewise for cage-free eggs: "cage free" is strictly a marketing term that has no official or USDA standing, so anyone can call their eggs cage free even if all it means is that the chickens were raised in a small, crowded shed.

Similarly, vegetarian eggs might or might not feed on a healthy diet free of animal products. The problem is, there's no third-party verification of either free range, cage free or vegetarian eggs, so caveat emptor.

The Search for Healthy Eggs

Despite these facts, some advocates of free range or cage free eggs and poultry insist they're more nutritious. Mother Earth News has published several reports that claim free range eggs have more nutrients and less cholesterol and fat than commercial eggs. Note, however, that their eggs came from chickens that lived in open fields, feeding on plants and bugs -- that's not the same as "free range," so their results are skewed.

And a recent study from the USDA, as reported in Time, found no difference in nutritional value between organic and commercial eggs. All eggs, it seems, are healthy eggs (provided you're not too concerned about cholesterol).

The Cheep Alternative

As far as other marketing gimmicks go, brown eggs are nothing more than eggs of a different color, so don't spend more on these. In short, if you're looking for a greener product, skip the free range or cage free eggs -- and their higher prices -- and head directly for the organic products, as these are the only ones that have strict, well-defined criteria for feed, antibiotics and processing.

But if you want a good egg that's safe and nutritious, and you're unconcerned about environmental issues or humane treatment of animals, then save some money and buy cheep -- I mean, cheap -- ordinary commercial eggs.