Effect of Storage Time on Egg Quality of Free Range Laying Hens

Abstract

The objective of this research was to study the effect of storage time on egg quality of free range laying hens. A total of 270 eggs was evaluated egg quality in 3, 7, 10, 14, 18, 21, 24, 28 and 31 days (average temperature 29°C and average relative humidity 74%). Each storage time, 30 free range eggs were evaluated specific gravity, Haugh unit, pH of albumen, pH of yolk, lightness of yolk (L*), redness of yolk (a*), yellowness of yolk (b*), yolk color from Roche yolk color fan, yolk color from egg multi tester, yolk percentage, albumen percentage, eggshell percentage, egg weight loss, yolk index, albumen index, shape index, eggshell strength and eggshell and eggshell membrane thickness. The results were found that specific gravity, Haugh unit, lightness of yolk, redness of yolk, yellowness of yolk, yolk color from Roche yolk color fan, yolk color from egg multi tester, albumen percentage, yolk index, albumen index and shape index decreased (P<0.05) with increasing storage time. In contrast, pH of albumen, pH of yolk, yolk percentage, eggshell percentage, egg weight loss and eggshell and eggshell membrane thickness increased (P<0.05) with increasing storage time. The present results reveal that increasing the storage time affected
quality of free range eggs. However, free range eggs showed better quality up to 14 days.