NUTRITIONAL QUALITY OF POULTRY EGGS TREATED WITH A MIXTURE OF CEREALS AND OLEAGINOUS CEREALS

Tatiana Dumitra Panaite, Rodica Diana Criste, Mariana Ropota, Al.P. Vlaicu, V.I. Criste, Margareta Olteanu, Cristina Soica

Abstract
    The role of essential fatty acids in human and animal health, growth, and development is a topic of continued interes. A 6-wk study was performed on 80 Tetra SL (56 weeks) laying hens, to determine the nutritional quality of the poultry eggs treated with a a mixture of cereal and oleaginous grains (corn, flax oil, barley and peas - VMLO). The laying hens, housed in an experimental hall with controlled environment (16 light regimen, 20.01±1.44°C temperature; 65±6.38% humidity) were assigned to 2 groups (C and E). The poultry received a conventional feed with the same basic structure (2750 kcal/kg metabolizable energy and 16.5% crude protein). Compared to the C diet (2750 kcal/kg metabolizable energy and 16.5% crude protein) characterized by 0.83 g of α-linolenic acid (C18:3n3), the E diet included 15% VMLO, which resulted in an increase in α-linolenic acid concentration in the diet up to 13.80 g /100g total fatty acids. At the end of the study, 18 eggs/group were collected to determine the PUFA and cholesterol concentrations in yolk. The results obtained for E group eggs, whose concentration in PUFA Ω3 (5.07±0.546g % total fatty acids) increased significantly (P<0.05) compared to C (1.22±0.139g % total fatty acids), indicated significantly lower values concerning the cholesterol concentration (1.661±0.056 g% dry egg yolk) compared to C (1.865±0.178 g% dry egg yolk). Use of VMLO in poultry feed has positively influenced egg quality without affecting production performance.

Key words: layers, eggs, fatty acids, cholesterol