Egg Composition I. The Effect of Diet and Storage on the Chemical Composition of Eggs

Abstract STUDIES of the influence of the diet of laying pullets or hens on the eggs produced have dealt, for the most part, with the effect on the number and size of the eggs rather than on their chemical composition. Mitchell (1932), in a report of the results of analyses of eggs from a variety of sources, emphasized the remarkable uniformity of the chemical composition of fresh eggs. Since, however, he presented no data concerning the diets of the hens it may only be inferred from his work that diet does not noticeably affect egg composition. The results of a few studies in which the composition of eggs has been determined following changes in certain dietary factors are in agreement with this observation. Buckner et al. (1925) observed that the addition of calcium carbonate to the basal diet of hens resulted in the production of eggs having an increased total content, . . .