Abstract
1. Rejected eggs were processed by freezing, freezing and boiling, or autoclaving, dried at 55 degrees C, and the chemical and amino-acid analysis and microbiological properties of the dried whole eggs (DWE) determined. The processed DWE was included in a laying-hen mash diet at 50 or 100 g/kg, mainly to replace soybean meal and maize, in a factorial design of 3 x 2 and fed to hens between 25 and 41 weeks of age. In addition, a control diet without DWE was used to create a total of 7 treatments; each having 5 replicates of 5 hens.
2. Hens fed the diet containing 50-g/kg frozen and boiled DWE and 100-g/kg frozen DWE laid the largest egg size, while hens fed the 50-g/kg frozen and boiled or autoclaved DWE diets yielded the highest egg mass and best feed conversion efficiency.
3. Hens fed the 50-g/kg frozen DWE laid eggs with a higher yolk indices, Haugh unit scores, and eggshell thickness and maintained higher Haugh unit scores during egg storage.
4. Yolk cholesterol significantly decreased in eggs from groups fed either the 50-g/kg frozen or autoclaved DWE diet, with freezing having the stronger effect.
6. In conclusion, 50-g/kg autoclaved DWE diets fed to laying hens between 25 and 41 weeks of age had no adverse effects on production, egg quality or reproductive organs, but decreased yolk cholesterol, and thus could be beneficially included in laying-hen diets.