History
- Consumption of eggs is parallel to consumption of chicken meat
- Symbol of fertility and religious icon in many cultures
EU egg consumption
increased greatly after 2003 and decrease slightly after 2004
UK egg consumption between 1974- 2010
decreased by 50%
eggs marketing history
- Early 20th century: egg industry sideline to other farm practices
- 1928: National Mark Scheme - attempt to provide reliably graded, quality egg
- 1939-45: Rationing; Eggs rationed until 1953
National Egg Distribution Association ltd set up to supply eggs - 1957- 1971: British Egg Market Board - aimed to bring stability to market - introduced the “lion” brand - go to work on an egg” : increased egg consumption 14%
- All eggs had to be purchased from suppliers: became ‘dumping ground’ for surplus/inferior eggs
- 1971-1986: Eggs Authority- producers had to find own market - Lion symbol dropped- Issues of diet and health raised (cholesterol)
- 1973: subject to EC marketing regulations
- 1986: British Egg Industry Council (voluntary ) - Salmonella scare- Consumer research - Re-launched Lion brand (higher welfare and safety standards, vaccinated against salmonella)
UK production of laying hens
Unit rearing
Selected genetic improvement > pedigree stock > great grandparent stock > grandparent stock > parent stock > laying hen
No of grandparent and parent stock
No of male
3-400 000 grandparent and parent hens; 30 000 males
how many breeder rearing farms
how many breeder production farms
12 breeder rearing farms (4 companies), 42 breeder production farms (9 companies)
Preparation stage of grandparents
- Grandparents imported as day olds or hatching eggs
- Placed on specialist rearing units then transferred to production units
- Grandparent hatching eggs transferred to hatchery: chicks reared in same way as for grandparents.
Hatchery:
how many
% production in UK
how many pullets and cockerels hatched
- 6 hatchery owned by 5 companies
- 1 hatchery produce 70% UK production
- 32 millions pullets and 32 millions cockerels hatched per yr
[Hatched to batch order ]
Baby Chicks
Treatment for F/ M
- Day old chicks sexed at hatchery
- Males discarded
- Females transported to rearing unit
Laying hen rear farm set up
Reared on floor or special cage units.
Organic layers reared free range (after brooding period)
No of rearing farms registered?
Batch size?
No of batch reared
- 260 rearing farms registered; batch sizes 5000 - >140 000
- Rear 2.5 batches per year
point of lay pullets.
- at 14-16 weeks: moved to production units
- Vaccinated against range of diseases (including Salmonella)
Commercial production units setting
Brought into lay by lighting regime (10 h light increasing to 14 h, I h/wk)
Four systems of commercial production units
Cage, barn, organic, free range
Flock sizes of commercial production units
5000 – 1.4 million
Number of commercial production units
865 registered farms (farms <350 layers not registered)
Caged systems
flock size
cost
% production
- Old style ‘battery ‘ banned from 2012
- ‘Enriched’ cages to provide increased space, perches, nesting areas, litter for dust bathing, scratching area
- Most adopting ‘colony cages’ of 60 birds
- Increased cost (from 65 to 72 p/dozen)
- 50% of eggs in UK come from caged systems
Barn system
stock density
% production
- Poorly understood by consumers
- Hens are not caged
- Perches, nest boxes, dust bathing areas
- Lower stocking density (9 birds/m2 usable area)
- Account for 4% of egg production
Free range and organic system
stock density
Risk
% production
cost
- Account for ca 41% of UK market (organic 4%)
- Birds have access to outside area
- Higher costs, greater risk of predators and parasites
- Organic: lower stocking densities and restrictions on feed
- Usage of range depends on weather and provision of cover (birds select discontinuous vertical cover)
Egg processing
- Eggs are transferred to packing stations (often on same unit)
- Graded and packed
2 grades: A and B
Grade A: clean, fresh, air sac <6 mm, yolk stays in centre (shell eggs: stamped)
Grade B: broken out and pasteurised
Industrial eggs: non- food use
egg stamp
- Farming method
- Country of origin
- Lion Mark (optional)
- Best before date
- Farm ID
Egg nutrition and quality
Nutrition interest
- High protein, low fat, rich source of vitamins and minerals
- Some interest in increasing the vitamin D, B12 and folate content
- n-3 PUFA content can be enriched
Egg yolk colour can be manipulated by
shell colour determined by
by diet
by genotype
