Egg Defects

To properly put an egg quality problem on a farm into perspective, it is important to follow these steps: Determining the severity of the problem on the farm The frequency and extent of the problem should be correctly identified. All eggs with the problem must be counted both during collection and classification. Determining the age of the flock The age of the flock has a significant effect on the occurrence of both external and internal egg defects. Therefore, flock age must be taken into account when assessing the severity of the problem. Evaluating classification efficiency If too many low-quality eggs are packaged for sale, the issue may lie in the candling/classification process or careless packaging afterwards. Factors affecting candling efficiency include: Candling speed: As the time given to show each egg decreases (e.g., from 0.6 seconds per egg to 0.2 seconds per egg), the efficiency of candling declines. Proportion of second-quality eggs: As the proportion of second-quality eggs entering the candling unit increases (e.g., more than 8–10%), candling efficiency decreases. Removing obviously low-quality eggs before classification helps reduce the operator’s workload.