Fortification of eggs with folic acid as a possible contribution to enhance the folic acid status of populations

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the enrichment of folic acid in eggs by supplementing hens' diet. Seventy-two hens (LSL) were assigned to 5 dietary groups and supplemented with 0, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 mg folic acid/ kg feed during an 8-week period. Eggs for folic acid analysis were collected in weeks 4 and 8 and analyzed by microbiological method using L. casei. The performance of the hens was not influenced by the supplementation. The content of folic acid in eggs increased significantly from 3.1 mu g/g DM to 5.5 mu g/g DM (week 4) and from 2. 1 mu g/g DM to 4.2 mu g/g DM (week 8), respectively, One fortified egg can provide up to 76 mu g folic acid. Additionally the intestinal availability of folic acid in eggs was determined in pigs as an animal model for human nutrition. Six pigs were fitted with ileorectal-anastomosis and received boiled eggs combined with a supplementary diet according to nutrient requirement. The metabolic trial ran for 12 days with a pre-period of 7 days and a collection period of 5 days. Feed and chyme were analyzed for folic acid as mentioned above. The availability of folate in eggs was determined as 68%, which means that one fortified egg provides up to 52 mu g folate equivalent to 13% of the recommended daily intake.