Abstract
The quality traits of fresh marketable chicken eggs collected during winter, autumn and summer periods from different local markets in Lebanon were evaluated in order to understand the reproductive fitness of the chicken and the correlation between collection dates. A total of 2000 brown and white eggs were analyzed and compared for their external quality parameters such as egg weight, length, width, size, shell thickness, specific gravity and for their internal quality traits such as Haugh unit, yolk diameter, yolk color, and yolk height. Results show that egg weight and size varied markedly and tended to be smaller during summer period. A significant difference was found between white and brown eggs in some quality traits such as egg weight, shell thickness, egg length, and yolk diameter parameters. Egg quality parameters were significantly reduced during summer season where eggs are exposed to high temperature conditions. For grading analysis, 80% of the total eggs were classified as A with a significant difference (p < 0.05) between white and brown egg and during collection dates. Overall, brown eggs graded better than white eggs in external quality cleanliness and shape. Based on our analysis, the results of this study show that Lebanese eggs are of good quality and suggest that proper egg handling and storage conditions should be applied especially at warm environmental conditions to improve egg quality during summer season.
Highlights
Eggs are considered among the most widespread, popular and nutritious food and are less expensive than other equivalent animal protein sources [1] [2]
Our study showed that egg weight was variable according to egg type and collection dates
Our results showed that no significant differences were observed between brown and white egg (p > 0.05) (Table 1) with values of 63.39 ± 0.130 and 63.26 ± 0.130 respectively
Summary
Eggs are considered among the most widespread, popular and nutritious food and are less expensive than other equivalent animal protein sources [1] [2]. They play a vital role in many diets and are considered as a major source of essential nutrients. Most of the increase in poultry production is taking place in developing countries, especially in Asia. This region accounts for more than a quarter of current global poultry production. Between 2000 and 2010, world trade in eggs increased by around eight percent per year. The egg production depends on various factors such as age of the bird, season, breed, genetic basis, elevated environmental temperature, supplements, and housing, among others [6] [7]
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