FACTORS AFFECTING EGG QUALITY AND FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES

Egg external and internal quality attributes are of great importance for egg industry worldwide. The current bibliographical analysis and review covers egg composition and factors affecting egg quality. Egg quality is generally measured as its shell quality and internal quality. The analysis of egg shell quality includes egg shell color (CIE L*, a*, b*), size, egg specific gravity, shell deformation, shell breaking strength, shell weight, shape index, shell percentage, shell thickness, and shell ultrastructure. The egg internal quality is measured as albumen quality, Haugh Unit, yolk color, the integrity of the perivitelline membrane, chemical composition of egg components and the egg functional properties. Factors that influence egg shell quality and egg internal quality are reviewed herein. Egg external quality can be affected by the strain and age of the avian resource, moult, feeding, feed quality, stress, disease, rearing system, or addition of food residues of egg producer to the diets. The egg internal quality depends on storage, avian species, strain, age, moult, nutritional condition, production system, disease and agro climatic conditions. A better knowledge and control of this range of factors that affect egg external and internal quality is very important and critical for good quality eggs production and egg product quality.