Malaysians are dumbfounded with news of fake chicken eggs being sold (and now seized) in a market at the northern Penang state.

The fake eggs are said to be tasteless, have unusual shapes, have rougher shell surface, and the white and yolk would quickly mixed together.

A quick find online shows that counterfeit eggs have been produced and sold illegally in China (where else?) in recent years, where the fake eggs are made of sodium alginate, alum, gelatin, edible calcium chloride, water and colouring.

The cost of producing a fake egg is about 1/3 (est.) of its selling price, which makes it profitable at places with cheap labour cost. The chemicals won’t pose immediate health threat to consumers, but different story long term wise.

[Update] The seized eggs in Malaysia are found to be genuine eggs. WTF.