Wholesale egg prices in the United States are breaking records, as an accelerating outbreak of bird flu in laying hens sharply reduces supplies, while buyers purchase more to bake Christmas cookies and other holiday treats.
The increases hit consumers already battling stubborn inflation and bracing for potentially higher prices on a wide range of items if President-elect Donald Trump moves forward with plans to impose tariffs on products from China and Mexico.
Wholesale prices for large eggs hit $5.57 per dozen in the Midwest on Wednesday, up 150% from a year ago and surpassing the previous record of $5.46 from December 2022, the commodities data firm said. Expana cousins.
Prices are even harder to swallow in California, where supplies are further limited by rules prohibiting farmers from raising chickens in cages. There, eggs reached a record of $8.85 per dozen, according to Expana.
These high prices are a boon for farmers who avoid bird flu outbreaks and are not tied to long-term pricing agreements that help control costs at some large retailers. But consumers could be harmed.
The average retail price of a dozen eggs topped $3.60 in November, up from $2.50 at the beginning of the year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Only in September was the average price higher, $3.80.
POSSIBLE NEW PRICE INCREASES
Retailers have been slow to pass on rising costs, partly because they don’t want to scare away shoppers during the busy holiday season, but they may raise prices in the new year, according to Karyn Rispoli, Expana’s egg editor-in-chief. . US supermarket chain Giant, owned by Ahold Delhaize, has canceled a promotion planned for January in Washington and Baltimore, according to Giant’s pricing director Erik Weenink.
“We don’t know where the costs will be,” he said.
The main factor driving up egg prices is the damage caused by avian flu to laying birds. The virus has killed nearly 123 million chickens, turkeys and other poultry in 49 states since the start of the current outbreak in 2022.
Across the country, the number of US laying hens fell 3% in October from a year earlier, to 315 million birds, and egg production fell 4%, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). by its acronym in English).
The USDA this month lowered its 2025 egg production and export forecasts, while raising its price outlook.
“There’s not enough supply for export markets, just like there’s not as much supply for the U.S. market,” said Greg Tyler, executive director of the USA Poultry & Egg Export Council, a trade group.
With information from Reuters.
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