ÖkoEiSpec

To verify the authenticity of eggs from laying hens, a 1H-NMR method was developed and validated as part of this project. This method was used to analyze 4,453 authentic eggs from laying hens raised under four different housing systems (small-group, barn, free-range, and organic systems) and from four breeds (Lohmann Selected Leghorn, Dekalb, Lohmann Brown, Sandys) were processed, and their yolk extracts were analyzed. Based on these 1H-NMR spectra, linear discriminant analyses (LDA) were performed to predict the housing system of laying hens based on the 1H-NMR spectrum of the egg yolk extract. The LDA model for classifying eggs from conventional and organic farming systems shows a model accuracy of 99.9%, while the LDA model for classifying eggs from the four farming systems has a model accuracy of 97.1%. In addition, an LDA model was developed to predict the breed of laying hens (Lohmann Selected Leghorn + Dekalb, Lohmann Brown, Sandys) with a model accuracy of 98.4%. The statistical models developed thus enable the prediction of the rearing system and breed of laying hens based on a 1H-NMR spectrum of an egg yolk extract, thereby ensuring the authenticity of the eggs.