Traceability of bovine meat and bones meal in eggs of commercial laying hens through carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes technique

The objective of this study was to trace the inclusion of bovine meat and bones meal in diets of laying hens analyzing eggs and theirs fractions (yolk and albumen), by carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes, as well as to evaluate the detectable analytical minimal index. Two hundred and forty (240) Shaver White laying hens aging 73 weeks were distributed in a completely randomized design, with five treatments and six replicates. Five increasing levels (0; 1.5; 3.0; 4.5 and 6.0%) of bovine meat and bones meal in a diet based on corn and soybean meal were evaluated. On the 35th day, 24 eggs per treatment were randomly collected, twelve for yolk and albumen sampling and another twelve for egg (yolk + albumen) sampling. The isotopic results were analyzed in a multivariate analysis of variance. Through an error matrix (95% confidence) the ellipses were determined to identify the differences between results obtained with supply of experimental diets and control diet, without 3% bovine meat and bones meal. In egg and yolk, from the isotopes pair of the diet with 3% bovine meat and bones meal, there was differentiation in the pair of the control treatment, whereas in the albumen it was possible to detect the 1.5 bovine meat and bones meal. The stable isotopes technique is able to trace the use of bovine meat and bones meal in laying hens feed; the minimal traceable level of inclusion is 1.5% in the albumen and 3.0% in the egg and yolk.