Dear Rabbi,
Does someone transgress the prohibition of “bal tash’chis” if one cooks eggs but eats only the egg white, because of the protein which is contained there, and disposes of the egg yolk?
Is there a difference if someone does this only once, rarely or on a regular basis?
The purpose being building up ones own muscles.
Thank you in advance for the reply
Yours sincerely, Avraham.
Answer:
There is no transgression involved in eating the white alone, the reason being that one needs to cook an entire egg in order to get the desired egg white, and the disposal of the yolk is an unavoidable consequence.
Of course, if there is some use that you can find for the yolk, this is preferable, but if there is none this is not considered wasteful. Many of the things we dispose of have a theoretical use, but since we are not in a position to use them we dispose of them, and this does not involve bal tashchis, which refers to destructive and wasteful behavior.
For more details concerning the general prohibition of bal tashchis please see our article on the subject.
Best wishes.
