ASSESSING THE QUALITY OF EGGS PRODUCED BY SIX BREEDS OF EGG-LAYING HENS IN RELATION TO THEIR AGE

The objective of the study was to determine the differences in the range of physical char-acteristics of eggs produced by egg-laying hens of different age, representing six breeds. The study covered the eggs produced by the following hen breeds: Rhode Island Red (K-44, K-66), Rhode Island White (A-22, A-88), Barred Rock (P-11), and New Hampshire (N-11). 30 eggs were randomly taken from 33 and 53 weeks old hens of each breed for the purpose of assessing their quality. The assessment procedure was performed on the next day after the eggs were taken using an electronic EQM device of the TSS QCS-II company. The eggs were characterized by good quality parameters. In particular, this referred to the following parameters: height of thick albumen, Haugh units, and shell strength. In addition, it was confirmed that many quality characteristics of egg and shell changed with the age of hens.