New Strategies for Production of Omega-3 Enriched Eggs: Alternative Poultry Feed Ingredients

The content and profile of fatty acids in the eggs can be modified by changes in the diet of hens. Flaxseed is used as a feed ingredient in layers' diets to incorporate omega-3 fatty acids into eggs, but its use as a poultry feed ingredient is associated both with detrimental health effects in hens and production of off-flavours in eggs. Pearl millet appears to be a satisfactory alternative feed grain for laying hens for production of "Omega Eggs". It contains higher levels of n-3 fatty acids compared with corn, the common energy source in current poultry diets. Therefore replacing corn with pearl millet can reduce the requirement for flaxseed in hens' diets for the purpose of "Omega-3" egg production. Hence the adverse effects of flaxseed are diminished without any negative effect on flock performance and egg characteristics, except for a depressed egg pigmentation resulted from feeding pearl millet to hens, which is recoverable by supplementing the hens' diet with natural pigments.