The influence of the plant essential oils on internal qualitative parameters and microbiological indicators of hens eggs content

Abstract

Essential oils are aromatic oily liquids obtained from plant material (flowers, buds, seeds, leaves, twigs, bark, herbs, wood, fruits and roots). Besides antibacterial properties, essential oils or their components have been shown to exhibit antiviral, antimycotic, antitoxigenic, antiparasitic, and insecticidal properties. In this experiment the effects of supplementation of the diet for laying hens with thyme and hyssop essential oils on physical and microbiological egg parameters were studied. Hens of laying hybrid ISA Brown (n = 72) were randomly divided at the day of hatching into 3 groups (n = 26) and fed for 41 weeks on diets which differed in kind of essential oil supplemented. In the first ex­pe­ri­men­tal group the feed mixture was supplemented with thyme essential oil addition 0.25ml . kg−1, in the second one got hyssop essential oil the same dose of 0.25ml . kg−1. The results suggest that the supplementation of thyme essential oil into laying hens diet statistically significantly increased egg albumen weight, egg albumen percentage portion (P < 0.05) and egg yolk colour (9.07a, 9.47b, 9.06a; P < 0.01), compared to the control group and decreased egg yolk percentage ratio. However, the most of qualitative parameters of internal content egg were not with thyme and hyssop essential oils addition significantly influenced. Significant differences in microbiological indicators were found among coliforms bacteria, enterococci, total number count (P < 0.001), lactobacilli and mesophilic sporulating aerobes bacteria (P < 0.05).

Keywords

• hens
• thyme essential oil
• hyssop essential oil
• egg albumen
• egg yolk
• microbiological quality