Use of achiote (Bixa orellana L.) seed powder as pigment of the egg yolk of laying hens

Abstract

At present, the poultry industry places great importance on natural pigment products to achieve an acceptable yolk color for the market. To determine the effect of achiote seed powder on the external and internal egg quality, a total of 400 Dekalb White egg-laying hens at 38 wk of age were placed for 56 d in a completely randomized design with 4 treatments and 20 replicate cages. Treatments consist of a control diet (CD) and CD + dietary supplementation with 0.50, 1.0, and 1.50% achiote seed powder. During the study, 40 eggs per treatment were collected on a weekly basis to determine the external (egg weight, eggshell breaking strength, shell thickness) and internal (albumen height, Haugh unit, and yolk color) quality, using a TSS EggQuality automatic analyzer. The use of achiote seed powder indicated statistical differences (P ≤ 0.05) for the following parameters: egg weight, Haugh unit, shell thickness, albumen height, and yolk color. Most of these statistical differences came from the treatment with 1.50% achiote seed powder compared with the control diet. However, no significant changes (P > 0.05) were indicated for egg weight (except week 4 and 5) and eggshell breaking strength (except week 5 and 6). All indicators of egg quality were affected by a significant interaction between the treatments and the experimental week (P ≤ 0.05). The dietary supplementation with achiote seed powder improves the external and internal egg quality in Dekalb White hens, with a greater emphasis on the yolk color.