April 14, 2025
 

US egg prices spiked to record high in March despite fall in wholesale prices

 

US egg prices increased again last month to reach a new record-high of US$6.23 per dozen despite US President Donald Trump's predictions, a drop in wholesale prices, and no egg farms having bird flu outbreaks.

 

The increase reported on April 10 in the Consumer Price Index means consumers and businesses that rely on eggs might not get much immediate relief. Demand for eggs is typically elevated until after Easter, which falls on April 20.

 

Industry experts were expecting the index to reflect a drop in retail egg prices as wholesale egg prices fell significantly in March. University of Arkansas agricultural economist Jada Thompson said the wholesale prices did not start dropping until mid-March, so there may not have been enough time for the average price for the month to decline. And grocery stores may not have immediately passed on the lower prices.

 

Bird flu outbreaks were cited as the major cause of price spikes in January and February after more than 30 million egg-laying chickens were killed to prevent the spread of the disease. Only 2.1 million birds were slaughtered in March and none of them were on egg farms.

 

Egg prices hit US$5.90 in February one month after setting a record at US$4.95 per dozen, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.

 

The farms that had fall outbreaks have been working to resume egg production after sanitising their barns and raising new flocks, but chickens must be about six months old before they start laying eggs. Thompson said those farms did not come back online as quickly as anticipated.

 

In the latest US Department of Agriculture (USDA) numbers, there were only about 285 million hens laying eggs nationwide as of March 1, Before the outbreak, the flock typically numbered more than 315 million.

 

Since the current bird flu outbreak began, more than 168 million birds have been slaughtered, most of them egg-laying chickens. Any time a bird gets sick, the entire flock is killed to help keep bird flu from spreading. That can have an effect on the egg supply as massive egg farms may have millions of birds.

 

Experts say Trump's plan to fight bird flu by focusing on strengthening egg farmers' defenses against the virus is likely to be more of a long-term help.

 

The USDA tried to find egg imports to add to the supply and nearly four million dozens of eggs were brought into the the United States in February. But egg traders saw an opportunity with the high prices and 7.6 million dozens were exported. Numbers for March were not yet available.

 

US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on April 10 suggested the rise in egg prices is temporary. She pointed to the overall consumer price index showing a slight dip in prices for goods and services across the US economy in March and suggested egg prices will soon follow.

 

"We're also moving into the Super Bowl of eggs, which is Easter," Rollins said. "So from the beginning, I've said this is sort of the high price for retail for eggs, but we feel very confident that will continue to come back down."

 

US egg prices did began falling in mid-March, according to Datasembly, a market research company that tracks prices at thousands of stores. Datasembly said eggs averaged US$5.98 per dozen the week beginning March 16 and dropped to US$5.51 the week beginning March 30.

 

But prices vary widely around the US, depending on the location of recent bird flu outbreaks and some state laws requiring eggs to be cage-free.

- AP