Mechanical vibration: what is the importance of this physical quantity in the poultry transport?

Mechanical vibrations are inherent to any system of transportation. In poultry production, the higher or lower intensity of this agent during the loading of eggs, chicks and chickens, can increase the production losses and decrease the efficiency of the system as a whole. However, despite its importance this factor is still unknown and little considered in the planning of the transport processes involved in the poultry industry. Therefore, the aim of raising the largest amount of data obtained so far to clarify the effects of mechanical vibrations already found in the transport of fertilized eggs, day-old chicks and broilers. A survey of international and national papers, from 1969 to 2014, which showed that the transport of fertilized eggs, the mechanical vibrations may be responsible for the incidence of cracks, in addition to promoting the agitation of internal constituents (yolk and albumen), which could potentially compromise the quality of birth and hatchlings. The transport of day-old chicks and broilers, the vibrations are related to situations of stress, discomfort and depreciation of the welfare of the birds, which still causes drops in the levels of glucose and corticosteroids and thus affect other parameters as the quality of the meat.