Dietary marine algae maintains egg consumer acceptability while enhancing yolk color

Department of Poultry Science, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, Texas A&M University, College Station 77843-2472, USA.

A drum-dried docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; C22:6n-3) enriched marine microalgal product (MA) was investigated as a n-3 fatty acid (n-3 FA) source in laying hen diets. Hen diets were supplemented with 2.4 or 4.8% MA. Eggs were analyzed for yolk color following 4 wk of feeding as well as weekly for 4 wk. Egg flavor was evaluated by consumer panelists. Feeding MA significantly (P < 0.01) increased yolk a* values in a dose response manner as early as 1 wk post-MA feeding. Consumer panelists found n-3 FA enriched eggs as acceptable as typical eggs. These data suggest that dietary MA is useful for enhancing yolk n-3 FA and color while maintaining consumer acceptability of the resulting egg product.

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