
Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Publications
Document Type
Article
Publication Version
Published Version
Publication Date
1-2011
Journal or Book Title
Poultry Science
Volume
90
Issue
1
First Page
263
Last Page
277
DOI
10.3382/ps.2010-00877
Abstract
As part of a systemic assessment toward social sustainability of egg production, we have reviewed current knowledge about the environmental impacts of egg production systems and identified topics requiring further research. Currently, we know that 1) high-rise cage houses generally have poorer air quality and emit more ammonia than manure belt (MB) cage houses; 2) manure removal frequency in MB houses greatly affects ammonia emissions; 3) emissions from manure storage are largely affected by storage conditions, including ventilation rate, manure moisture content, air temperature, and stacking profile; 4) more baseline data on air emissions from high-rise and MB houses are being collected in the United States to complement earlier measurements; 5) noncage houses generally have poorer air quality (ammonia and dust levels) than cage houses; 6) noncage houses tend to be colder during cold weather due to a lower stocking density than caged houses, leading to greater feed and fuel energy use; 7) hens in noncage houses are less efficient in resource (feed, energy, and land) utilization, leading to a greater carbon footprint; 8) excessive application of hen manure to cropland can lead to nutrient runoff to water bodies; 9) hen manure on open (free) range may be subject to runoff during rainfall, although quantitative data are lacking; 10) mitigation technologies exist to reduce generation and emission of noxious gases and dust; however, work is needed to evaluate their economic feasibility and optimize design; and 11) dietary modification shows promise for mitigating emissions. Further research is needed on 1) indoor air quality, barn emissions, thermal conditions, and energy use in alternative hen housing systems (1-story floor, aviary, and enriched cage systems), along with conventional housing systems under different production conditions; 2) environmental footprint for different US egg production systems through life cycle assessment; 3) practical means to mitigate air emissions from different production systems; 4) process-based models for predicting air emissions and their fate; and 5) the interactions between air quality, housing system, worker health, and animal health and welfare.
Access
Open
Rights
Works produced by employees of the U.S. Government as part of their official duties are not copyrighted within the U.S. The content of this document is not copyrighted.
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Xin, Hongwei; Gates, Richard S.; Green, Angela R.; Mitloehner, Frank M.; Moore, Philip A. Jr.; and Wathes, Christopher M., "Environmental impacts and sustainability of egg production systems" (2011). Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Publications. 213.
https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/abe_eng_pubs/213
Included in
Agriculture Commons, Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering Commons, Poultry or Avian Science Commons
Comments
This article is from Poultry Science 90, no. 1 (2011): 263–277, doi:10.3382/ps.2010-00877.