Advances in egg defect detection, quality assessment and automated sorting and grading

Abstract: Efficient control of the quality of eggs for human consumption facilitates the production of enough eggs that meet consumer requirements. The development of techniques for assessing the different quality aspects of eggs is an essential prerequisite for achieving this goal of quality. Novel technologies which are fast, automated and reliable offer the possibility of assessing quality in all individual units instead of relying on the evaluation of a subsample. Factors affecting the choice of techniques include consistency within a single product, measurement speed, instrumentation cost and the sorting efficiency required. This chapter reviews available techniques, focusing on advances, for the assessment of egg quality.