The objective of this research was to evaluate the quality of eggs from Dekalb White hens under different temperatures (room temperature, 25 ºC; and refrigeration, 8 ºC), storage times (7, 14 and 21 days), age of birds (35, 40, 45 and 50 weeks) and housing densities (625, 500, 416.6 and 357.14 cm²/birds). Haugh unit (HU) values and albumen height of 1,120 eggs from 528 laying hens, randomly allocated to four groups with different population densities were evaluated. The results showed a significant effect on Haugh units, between the time and storage conditions and between the ages of laying hens and storage condition. Eggs stored in refrigeration showed less weight loss and better Haugh unit indices when compared with eggs stored at room temperature. The increased time of storage, regardless of the temperature, caused loss in their quality. According to the results of this study, based on the evaluation of the albumen height, temperature, storage time, density and age of the layers influence the values of Haugh unit.

Esta pesquisa foi realizada com o objetivo de avaliar os aspectos produtivos e econômicos de poedeiras comerciais (Gallus gallus) submetidas a diferentes densidades de alojamento. Foram alojadas 264 poedeiras em gaiolas com dimensões de 100 cm × 50 cm × 40 cm em delineamento inteiramente casualizado, com quatro grupos distribuídos em esquema fatorial 4 × 4, com 8, 10, 12 e 14 aves por gaiola, correspondendo a 625, 500, 416,6 e 357,14 cm²/ave. As características avaliadas foram: produção de ovos, peso médio dos ovos, consumo de ração, massa dos ovos, conversão alimentar por dúzia e ovos imprestáveis para consumo humano. A densidade na gaiola teve efeito apenas sobre os ovos tipos extra e segunda e sobre a produção diária dos ovos tipo segunda, mas não influenciou as demais variáveis estudadas. Para poedeiras comerciais da linhagem Dekalb White, a utilização de gaiolas com a densidade de alojamento de 625, 500, 416,6 e 357,14 cm²/ave na fase de produção não prejudica os parâmetros de qualidade da produção, sob os aspectos zootécnico e econômico.

The objective of this research was to study productive and economical aspects of laying hens (Gallus gallus) submitted to different housing densities. Two hundred and sixty-four laying hens were housed in cages with dimensions of 100 cm × 50 cm × 40 cm in a randomized complete design with four groups distributed in a 4 × 4 factorial arrangement, with 8, 10, 12 and 14 animals/cage, corresponding to 625, 500, 416,6 and 357,14 cm²/animal. The following characteristics were assessed: egg production, medium egg weight, feed intake, egg mass, feed conversion per dozen and inappropriate eggs for human consumption. Cage density only had an effect on the extra large and medium type eggs and on the daily production of medium type eggs, but did not influence the other variables studied. For laying hens of the Dekalb White lineage, the use of cages with housing densities of 625, 500, 416,6 and 357,14 cm²/animal in the production phase did not harm the quality parameters under the productive and economical aspects.