Best Heritage Chicken Breed for Eggs

Over the last 8,000 or so years of domesticated chickens; businesses, farmers and the chicken obsessed have all worked on the perfect egg laying hen. But with hundreds of unique breeds worldwide, which is the best heritage chicken breed for eggs?

Let’s find out by counting down my top 5 heritage chicken breeds for eggs!

Firstly, What is a Heritage Chicken Breed?

Heritage chicken breeds are the ‘old fashioned’ breeds of chickens. The breeds our ancestors would keep to support their families diet, whether that be in the way of meat or eggs.

You can think of heritage breeds as you do heirloom vegetables. They are what all modern chickens, including commercial breeds, descend from.

For further information and comparisons on heritage and commercial breeds see my Commercial or Heritage Chicken Breeds post.

The breeds that have made my list of top egg layers are the workhorses of the egg laying heritage breeds. Coming close to if not meeting the egg output of their commercial cousins.

In decending order here are my top 5 heritage chicken breeds for eggs!

5. Sussex

Photo by Austin Joy on Unsplash

The Sussex is one of the oldest chicken breeds around today, originating in Britain around 43 AD. For almost a century they were the most common dual purpose breed in England, supplying both meat and eggs to the London market.

The Sussex of today remain excellent layers of up to 250 large brown eggs annually. It is worth noting that the light and white Sussex hens are better layers than their brown, red and speckled coloured relatives.

You’ll find Sussex hens to be calm and friendly barnyard companions. They are inquisitive, yet docile, making them easy to handle and care for.

Sussex are considered one of the most graceful breeds.

Sussex Low-down

4. Ancona

Originating along the coast of Italy, in the town of the same name, the Ancona is a robust light weight breed. They have a predisposition to be flighty and resent confinement, yet, with time can be easily tamed.

Ancona’s lay up to 250 white eggs per year. They can range in size from medium to large.

Being light weight birds, Ancona’s are very good ‘flyers’. If left to free range during the day, which is their preferred living arrangement, they will seek a quiet spot to lay that isn’t the convenient nesting box provided.

Ancona’s have the reputation of being good winter layers. As the days shorten and most other breeds go off lay, Anconas usually carry on well into the winter months before taking only a short spell.

For full transparency, Ancona’s are my favourite of all chicken breeds. They are hardy, friendly and very beautiful. For this reason i am willing to overlook the smaller size of their eggs compared to the other breeds on this list.

This breed has also had a renaissance in the last few years resulting in its removal from its long held position on the Australian rare breeds list. It is now classified as a breed in recovery. A great victory for this farmyard star.

Ancona Low-down

3. Leghorn

Photo by Finn Mund on Unsplash

The number three spot on my list could be seen as a controversial placing. The Leghorn is renown world over for its astonishing egg laying capability. The Leghorn often takes out the number one place on any egg layer list.

It’s easy to see why, the Leghorn lays up to 300 large white eggs per year. They have been used in the commercial egg laying industry for generations and are the basis for most modern commercial/hybrid breeds used today.

They are hardy birds, with a low feed conversion ratio and adapt well to free ranging or confinement.

The sole reason this Italian breed takes third place on my list is their temperament. They are nervous, flighty and un-sociable; avoiding human contact, making them more difficult to care for than other breeds.

Leghorn Low-down

2. Rhode Island Red

Photo by Steven Van Elk on Unsplash

The mother hen of the American egg laying breeds. They lay up to 300 large brown eggs annually.

The Rhode Island Red is another breed that has a history in commercial egg production and similarly to the Leghorn has been used extensively in the development of todays commercial/hybrid breeds.

The Rhode Island Red is a relatively young breed being developed in the state of Rhode Island in the late 1800’s by crossing Leghorns with a mix of asian breeds. The result was a hardy, large framed bird, that lays exceptionally well. The Rhode Island Red become the staple dual purpose breed for backyard flocks.

Temperament can vary across the Rhode Island Red breed. While some can be friendly and receptive towards humans; others are territorial leaning toward aggressive.

Rhode Island Red Low-down

1. Australorp

That’s right. The number one heritage chicken breed for eggs is the Australorp and my reasons are many.

Firstly, Australorps lay a whopping 250 – 300 eggs per year. In fact, history tells us Australorps are capable of surpassing 300 eggs a year. The current world record for eggs laid within a 365 day period by a heritage breed is 364 and that record was set by, what I presume was, a very weary Australorp hen.

What else I love about this breed? They are true blue Aussies. Australorps are an Australian heritage breed developed in the 1900’s using primarily Black Orpington parent stock. Hence the amalgamation of Australia and Orpington in their name.

For good measure it is thought that a combination of White Leghorn, Minorca, Plymouth Rock and Langshan genes were thrown in the mix to make this egg laying machine.

In addition to eggs, Australorps are known for being good natured, hardy and easy to care for. They also make an excellent dual purpose breed with a heavy frame.

Australorps are the ultimate all round breed which is why they are my number one pick for best heritage chicken breed for eggs.

Australorp Low-down

Let me know what your favourite heritage layer chicken breed is in the comments.

And read my article on the Best Heritage Chicken Breed for Meat.