The effects of cage type, oviposition time and egg storage period on the egg quality characteristics of laying hens

Abstract

Egg has valuable nutrients however; these nutrients may be affected by many factors. In this study, it was aimed to determine the effects of cage type, oviposition time and egg storage period on egg quality characteristics of laying hens. A total of 410 eggs were collected from unenriched and enriched cages in the morning and in the afternoon. After the eggs were weighed, they were stored at 21oC and 20% relative humidity until the 30th day of storage. It was determined that unenriched cage eggs had higher in shell breaking strength, albumen ash and pH & lipid of yolk and lower egg weight loss, yolk index & yolk color compared with enriched cage eggs. Morning eggs had the highest egg weight loss and the lowest egg weight, yolk height and yolk diameter. Dry matter & protein of albumen and dry matter & lipid of yolk were lower, while protein of yolk was higher in the morning eggs than those in the afternoon. It was observed that the storage period was important factor for egg quality characteristics. The effect of oviposition time and storage period interaction on egg quality should not be neglected. Interactions between cage type and storage period and between oviposition time and storage period were found statistically significant for some chemical composition of albumen and yolk. It is concluded that A quality egg criteria are preserved up to 14 days at an average temperature of 21°C and 20% humidity.