Acetic acid, vinegar, and citric acid as washing materials for cuticle removal to improve hatching performance of quail eggs

The cuticle is the outmost layer of the eggshell and may affect the hatchability by modulating eggshell conductance. Three different solutions using acetic acid (AA), vinegar (V), and citric acid (CA) for cuticle removal by egg washing were developed, and the effects of cuticle removal on hatching performance of quail hatching eggs were evaluated. A total of 5,238 fresh quail hatching eggs were randomly divided into 9 treatments as follows: unwashed control, nondipped (CND); washed control, water dipped (CWD); standard control, 0.13% sodium hyperchlorite (CSH); 2% AA (AA2); 4% AA (AA4); 44.4% V (V2); 88.8% V (V4); 2% CA (CA2); and 4% CA (CA4). Overall, AA4, V4, and CA4 treatments significantly improved the hatchability of fertile eggs (95.42%, 94.16% and 95.66%, respectively) (P < 0.05) and the hatchability of CND, CWD, CSH, AA2, V2 and CA2 treatments were 90.98%, 93.00%, 92.27%, 79.44%, 90.37%, and 90.59%, respectively. The eggshell thickness and cuticle quality results showed that all AA, V, and CA solutions can effectively remove the quail eggshell cuticle, and AA4, V4 and CA4 significantly decreased eggshell thickness (P 0.05). There were no significant differences between treatments for chick livability and live weight at the first 21 D of life. Results of the present study indicate that cuticle removal with AA4, V4, or CA4 could effectively decrease the microbial activity on the eggshell surface during the incubation period and improve hatchability of quail hatching eggs without negative effects on hatch time and performance of quail chicks.