If you’ve been browsing social media lately, you might have seen viral posts claiming that “lab-grown eggs” are secretly sneaking into your favorite snacks. Now, before you enter panic mode, let’s break down what’s actually happening behind the grocery aisle saga and answer some of your most pressing questions.
What are these “lab-grown” eggs anyway?
Despite the dramatic internet rumors, no animal cells are involved. It is also not something straight out of your classic sci-fi movie experiments. The product making headlines is called OvoPro, an egg-white protein made by The EVERY Company.
Instead of coming from a chicken coop, OvoPro is created through precision fermentation. Scientists place the gene for egg-white protein into a strain of yeast called Komagataella phaffii, which then ferments in tanks to produce the protein. It’s the exact same trusted technology that has been used for decades to make insulin and the rennet found in most cheese.
Should we really call them “lab-grown”?
While viral posts call them “lab-grown,” fact-checkers at Snopes confirmed the product is real and on shelves, but noted that calling them “lab-grown” in the cultivated-meat sense is completely inaccurate because that classification usually describes products that grow actual animal cells.
Demand is skyrocketing, too. Orders for OvoPro surged 550% in early 2026 compared to all of 2025, leading to national placement at Walmart and Target this past June.
Did they skip safety checks or secret labeling?
While social media posts have thrown around words like “infiltrated” and claimed that companies bypassed safety regulations or hid ingredients, the reality points to the opposite. Here is how the facts actually stack up:
- FDA review: Contrary to viral claims, the company didn’t skip safety reviews. EVERY submitted its safety data under the FDA’s voluntary GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) notification framework and received a formal “no questions” letter in 2023 (GRN 1104). Hundreds of everyday ingredients, like stevia extracts, use this exact same path.
- Labeling rules: Federal law strictly requires OvoPro to be listed in the ingredient panel. Snopes investigated claims that brands were omitting it and found zero evidence of hidden ingredients.
- Regulatory quirks: Because it is yeast-derived rather than made from a genetically modified crop, USDA rules generally don’t require a “bioengineered food” tag. However, it must still be clearly named on the ingredient list.
While standard supplier confidentiality keeps specific brand partnerships private, the ingredient panel on the back of the box will always tell you what you’re buying.
How do you spot them on your next grocery run?
If you want to know what’s in your cart at Walmart or Target, a quick look at the back label is all you need:
Real hen eggs: If you want real chicken eggs, you need to look for terms like “real egg,” “whole egg,” or “liquid egg” on the ingredient panel.Fermentation-derived: To spot the OvoPro eggs, be on the lookout for “egg-free” or Certified Vegan labels, since it acts as an animal-free, allergen-equivalent protein.
It is important to stress that the ingredient list is the most reliable source, especially when you are in doubt. Looking at just the marketing copy on the front of the package might not give you the full information.
On a final note, it does not matter whether you prefer traditional chicken eggs or animal-free alternatives, you can rest easy knowing that nothing is sneaking past the label.
Sources: HelloFlorenceSC, Snopes