Consumers’ acceptance of eggs as a function of hen genotype and rearing system

• Local chicken breeds in alternative supply chains valorises local productions. • The development of sustainable production systems increases egg quality. • Hen genotype and rearing system are indices for assessing consumer acceptance. • The production system and animal welfare affect consumer choice. The aim of this study was to evaluate consumers’ acceptance of eggs as a function of hen genotype and rearing system. In view of supporting biodiversity safeguard and animal welfare, two Italian dual-purpose breeds (i.e., Bionda Piemontese, BP; Robusta Maculata, RM) and their crossbreeds with the commercial hybrid Sassò (BPxS; RMxS) were considered, reared in two different systems (i.e., enriched cage, C; free-range, F). As a reference, the commercial hybrid Lohmann Brown (L) was included in the experimental design. Eggs for sensory analysis were collected from 59-week-old layers and boiled for presentation to 80 untrained consumers. Panellists were instructed to indicate the liking degree in unstructured 9-point hedonic scales for the following attributes: overall appearance, general aroma, general flavour, yolk colour, texture, and overall liking. Cage-free and organic eggs were bought by 44% and 39% of the respondents, respectively, thus indicating a significant (p < 0.001) attention towards production system and animal welfare. Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) were detected only for overall appearance, yolk colour, and overall liking. The maximum median score was always obtained for the eggs RMxS reared in F. Eggs from L reared F got the lowest median scores for overall appearance and yolk colour. Considering the overall liking attribute, the significantly most preferred samples (p < 0.05) resulted RM_C (6.60), BPxS_C (5.90), and RMxS_F (6.80). The hen genotype resulted significant (p < 0.05) for yolk colour and overall liking, whereas the rearing system significantly affected (p < 0.05) yolk colour and general aroma.