Egg Force Reader Aids Government Test Shell Strength
GLOBAL - Dan Dan Bachrach, an expert in raising laying hens with the Training Service at Israel's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development purchased ORKA’s Egg Force Reader (EFR) for research purposes a year ago.Instruments manufactured by ORKA Food Technology (better known as “EggTester.Com”) are being used extensively in QC laboratories operated by egg producers, packers, universities, regulatory authorities, and primary breeders all over the world. Here is a report from Dan Dan Bachrach, an expert in raising Laying Hens, Training Service, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Israel, which purchased ORKA’s Egg Force Reader (EFR) for research purposes a year ago.
EFR (Egg Force Reader) was purchased a year ago in order to improve the measurement of the strength of the eggshell.
EFR is used in experiential farms located in northern Israel, where many experiments are conducted simultaneously, including performance comparison of different genetic lines, the effect of various additives on food and water and other laying performances.
Frequency of use of EFR is once a month, each time examined several dozens of eggs.
EFR is operated by the same operator at all times.
Prior to the purchase of EFR, shell strength was estimated indirectly by index of percentage of eggshell weight compare to the weight of whole egg.
We have no doubt that the use of EFR contributes significantly to eggshell strength evaluation directly, allowing examination and accurate numerical results between different experimental factors examined at the experimental farms.
In one study conducted last year (2011) at our experimental farm using EFR, the correlation between the egg’s weight and shell strength was investigated. Based on the review of 1000 eggs over half a year, during the second breeding season (after the Forced Molting) we found a very weak negative correlation (R ² = 0.005) between the egg’s weight and shell strength.
Here we highlight one reservation principle regarding the test method using EFR:
EFR is able to measure the power index of whole egg only, a matter that could lead to bias in some of the results, because the broken eggs (which most likely having weaker strength shell) are not, a priori, included in the test.
The current ORKA range comprises:
- The Egg Analyzer; this instrument determines the weight of eggs, albumen height, Haugh units, yolk colour and USDA grade for routine quality control and regulatory compliance;
- The Egg Force Reader; this device measures the force required to crush a shell and is a direct measure of marketability;
- The Egg Shell Thickness Gauge; this instrument uses ultrasound to measure the thickness of shells for quality control and research applications.