DESCRIPTION OF THE QUALITY OF SHELL EGGS PRODUCED BY AGRO-ECOLOGICAL SYSTEM DURING LAYING PERIOD OF ISA BROWN ® HENS - PRELIMINARY RESULTS

Based on the EU animal welfare laws, the conventional production of laying hens will have to change some aspects in Brazil. Eggs produced in alternative systems are being increasingly demanded by consumers. Despite this, there is still no accurate information on criteria regarding the quality of egg shells of this type in our country. The objective of this study was to characterize the eggshell quality of agro-ecological’s production eggs produced by hens of Isa Brown ® line of a property of the state of Rio Grande do Sul / Brazil. Six eggs were collected, every two weeks, from hens among were 28 until 54 weeks of production, totalizing 14 evaluations. The variables studied were shell egg weight, specific gravity, percentage of shell and shell thickness. Eggs produced by agroecosystem’s hens had parameters of egg weight and shell percentage affected by age of hens. Regarding the other parameters studied, there was no evidence the influence of bird age. The analysis of specific gravity of eggs showed lower mean values than other studies with commercial eggs.