The internal quality of 768 commercial white eggs from 40-week-old Hy-Line laying hens was evaluated after storage under different conditions. The eggs were submitted to treatments in a factorial scheme of 2x4x8, being two types of package (using plastic film or not), four periods of storage (zero, five, 10, and 15 days), and eight refrigerated storage times (zero, five, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 days). The values of Haugh Unities (HU) and albumen pH were measured. The HU values significantly decreased (P<0.05) during storage mainly at room temperature. Wrapping the eggs packages with plastic film showed efficient in preserving their internal quality since it kept HU higher for a longer storage time. The pH values of the eggs increased during the storage time (P<0.05), independently of both storage temperature and packaging. It was concluded that temperature and time of storage of eggs influenced on the values of HU and wrapping the eggs packages with plastic film improved their internal quality.
egg; storage; Haugh unities; albumen pH
