TITLE:
Effect of Citric Acid, Phytase and Calcium Levels on the Calcium and Phosphorus Content in Egg: Yolk-Albumen and Shell, Yolk Color and Egg Quality in Diets of Laying Hens
AUTHORS:
Lily M. Vargas-Rodríguez, Jesús E. Morales-Barrera, José G. Herrera-Haro, Juan Antonio-Bautista, Roberto López-Pozos, David Hernández-Sánchez
KEYWORDS:
Citric Acid, Phytase, Calcium, Laying Hens, Eggshell
JOURNAL NAME:
Food and Nutrition Sciences,
Vol.7 No.14,
December
9,
2016
ABSTRACT: To evaluate the effect of different levels of citric acid (CA) combined with phytase
and calcium levels in the diets of laying hens on the calcium and phosphorus (P)
contents of eggs: yolk-albumen and shell, yolk color and egg quality. A study was
conducted with 24-week-old laying hens fed with a diet based on sorghum and soybean
meal with 2.7 Mcal of EM/kg, 15% crude protein, 3.25% calcium and 0.25%
available P. The levels of CA, phytase and calcium were 0%, 0.6% and 1.2%; 0 and
300 units of phytase (PHYU)/kg; and 3.0% and 3.25%, respectively. Phytase was
added as an ingredient into to the diets, contributing 0.1% P and 0.3% calcium. A
completely randomized factorial experiment was performed with a 3 × 2 × 2 design
and 4 replications. The CA increased (P