The effect of storage and strain of hen on egg quality

Abstract

Eggs from 31-wk-old ISA-White and ISA-Brown hens were sampled immediately after lay and after periods of storage of 1, 3, 5, and 10 d at room temperature. Longer periods of storage resulted in lower albumen weight and albumen height and higher albumen pH. Eggs from ISA-Brown hens had more albumen and shell than those from ISA-White hens, likely due to differences in selection history rather than due to pleiotropic effects of eggshell color. Within each line and storage period, the egg weight was more closely associated with albumen weight than with yolk or shell weight. The albumen height of eggs from ISA-Brown hens was lower than that of ISA-White hens at all storage times, but the albumen pH was not affected by the strain. Albumen height and albumen pH were statistically unrelated in fresh eggs, but the association became larger as the storage period increased, suggesting that albumen height measures factors that are present when the egg is laid and changes during storage, whereas albumen pH measures only the effect of storage.