In search of the elusive dark orange yolk

[Hholly]

I just don't get it....why a desire for darker yolks?...there is no difference in nutritional value & they taste the same...I'm very happy with my bright yellow yolks.

They actually taste very different. Much richer and eggier flavor. That's part of the reason I wanted my own chickens.

 

[bigt447]

Still don't understand how adding marigold extract or paprika can make an egg taste better...now maybe that's the case when adding greens, etc.

 

[aart]

Still don't understand how adding marigold extract or paprika can make an egg taste better...now maybe that's the case when adding greens, etc.

It changes the nutritive chemistry in the birds body.

 

[centrarchid]

Still don't understand how adding marigold extract or paprika can make an egg taste better...now maybe that's the case when adding greens, etc.

When you get a chance, try to smell a rich carotenoid / vitamin A source. You will likely be able to smell a pleasant fruity smell. That can add to the overall flavor of even the egg, especially if not overwhelmed by spices.

 

[bigt447]

I've smelled marigolds & paprika. Don't like it. I like my eggs just as they are. If it ain't broke, I ain't gonna try to fix it.

 

[Hholly]

I've smelled marigolds & paprika. Don't like it. I like my eggs just as they are. If it ain't broke, I ain't gonna try to fix it.

To each, their own. But I started this thread specifically to get great info like posted above. Much appreciated y'all!

 

[centrarchid]

This is fully dependent upon how it's fed, you can simply state that most of the pepper powder will be consumed as there is never a shortage of 'powder' waste in my feeder that goes uneaten every week, as I'm sure others notice as well, if you are using a small amount of pepper powder that waste could be a huge percentage of what was fed... The amount consumed in either case will depend greatly on how it's offered and fed...

There is also nothing saying the alfafa can't be milled into a powder or mixed into a fermented feed, thus making the potential 'waste' likely very similar to powdered pepper fed the same way...

On a dry weight basis, what percentage of the diet your chickens eat comes from the dried alfalfa hay products? My best estimate for mine is less than 10% if the hay particles can be separated from the others when the birds glean through the feed offered. When the birds are out foraging to consume live greens, the intake appears to be much higher even when taking into account the higher moisture content. The feces from the free-range birds has large amounts of obvious fiber. When I follow the birds around for an entire day at a time they seem to not only intersperse intake of greens with animal and seed forages, they also like to browse selectively on greens in a given area taking only a few bites before moving on. They seem particularly keen on consuming a range of plant types where the sum of all exceeds what would be consumed of only one. A plant they seem particularly fond of is the white clover found in yards, especially the new tender shoots. They also like to work on ground previously grazed by larger livestock just a couple days prior.


I could see the hays working for me but intake would have to be increased substantially and ideally without conflicting with intake of higher nutrient (protein and energy in particular) density components of the diet. My gut feeling is roughly 25% of the diet by weight would need to be alfalfa and the alfalfa needs to be of the highest quality.

 

[MeepBeep]

Efficiency of uptake is where I think the pepper powders will make up difference in raw material cost.

Did you notice that I used a VERY conservative 50% uptake of alfalfa in my numbers above? As well as factoring in a low end bale weight and high end cost per bale? I factored in over a 50% waste (probably closer to 75% when all is done) in the above math, are you suggesting uptake would be fare less than 50% or even less than 25%?

From experience if I feed 50lbs of alfalfa to the chickens there is not going to be anywhere near 25lbs of waste...

 

[centrarchid]

Efficiency I eluded to deals with actual carotenoids consumed versus that coming out with feces. None of the papers I could find or you provided that very important information.



You are emphasizing what I call waste or spillage. Numbers I crunched that matched your results did not consider waste or spillage.

 

[MeepBeep]

This has to be evaluated by a trial, not just numbers pulled off the internet. The Roche’s color fan scale would level the playing field. My bet is my 0.5 kg containers of paprika ($6 each) will impart as much color to the eggs as two bales of your hay because of what I think will prove to be assimilation efficiency of pigments coming from the hay.

I provided scientific quantitative data in my argument on the available pigments primarily responsible for yolk color, and you still make hypothetical proclamations based on no data?

Poop color is no measure of yolk color...