US egg prices rose over 30% in 2022 amid inflation and bird flu which killed 40 MILLION hens
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Blowing the Chicken Coop: Egg prices are up more than 30% this year due to inflation and the devastating bird flu that killed 40 MILLION chickens fried the market
- Egg prices have risen to record highs as US supplies were shaken this year by a major avian influenza outbreak that killed 58 million birds.
- Grocery stores have seen wholesale egg prices rise over the last nine weeks and are looking for ways to keep prices competitive.
- Some in the US have turned to expired foods to cope with rising grocery prices.
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Egg prices have reached record levels this year, driven mainly by inflation and the prolonged bird flu that has hampered bird supplies in all 50 US states this year.
More than 40 million laying hens died in the outbreak, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Wholesale prices for large Midwestern eggs, in turn, rose to $5.36 in December, according to market research firm Urner Barry.
Egg retail prices have soared more than any other supermarket item, jumping more than 30% from January to early December. Egg prices have outpaced general spikes in food and drink prices, leading to the staple weighing heavily on the wallets of American families.
Egg prices have outpaced general spikes in food and drink prices, leading to the staple weighing heavily on the wallets of American families.
A significant wave of bird flu killed nearly 58 million birds in the US this year
Highly contagious bird flu has spread like wildfire among US poultry this year, killing an estimated 58 million birds, the deadliest outbreak in US history, according to department data. of Agriculture of the USA
Some entire flocks of poultry are killed after an infection is confirmed to try to limit the rapid spread of the disease.
The more than 40 million birds killed mean the supply of laying hens fell by more than 5 percent, to some 308 million, between January and December this year.
The bird flu outbreak has been blamed mainly on wild birds bringing the virus with them as they migrate across the country.
Despite the disappearance of the birds, the shortage of eggs is still far away. In fact, egg supplies have been more stable this year than during the last major US bird flu outbreak in 2015, according to American Egg Board Executive Director Emily Metz.
Although the 2015 outbreak ended in June, this year’s cases have continued to emerge through the fall and may continue.
“All the signs are that this is going to be something the industry has to deal with,” Metz told the Journal. “We continue to manage it and improve the way we manage it.”
Some entire flocks of poultry have been culled when a single case of bird flu is detected to prevent the possible spread of the highly contagious disease.
Egg prices have shot up 30% between January and December of this year
Over 40 million laying hens have died during the current avian flu outbreak
Meanwhile, the price of eggs has risen over the past nine weeks as demand increases with the arrival of baking season and hotter breakfasts have become the norm during the colder months.
The director of sales and marketing for Morton Williams Supermarkets in New York said: “Every week you get a quote for eggs, it’s more and more.”
Some supermarkets have opted to sell more organic eggs that are sometimes less expensive than typical varieties, although consumer demand has reportedly remained steady, despite rising prices.
Some grocery stores have decided to sacrifice some profit in order to maintain a stable customer base. In some stores, eggs are being sold for slightly above cost as wholesale prices continue to rise.
Grocery prices generally remain high this year due to the drivers of inflation, including higher labor costs, as well as increasingly expensive ingredients and logistics.