According to data, egg prices will surge and may approach record highs! Find out what’s behind that!
Grocery shoppers may face near record highs egg prices. After hitting record highs two years ago, the cost of large Grade A eggs has once again been surging. According to recent consumer price index (CPI) data, the average retail price of eggs in the U.S. has risen by 37.5% since November 2023, with an 8.2% jump in November 2024 alone. A dozen large Grade A eggs now costs $3.65, up from $2.14 a year earlier, based on statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The last record was set in January 2023, when Grade A egg prices reached $4.82 per dozen, skyrocketing from $1.93 in January 2022. During the pandemic, eggs stood out as one of the most inflated goods, with an annual inflation rate of 60% in 2022, according to CPI data. However, experts say that the current increase has two main culprits: a bird flu outbreak reducing egg supplies and the strong seasonal demand typically seen during the winter holidays.
How Bird Flu is Driving Egg Prices Higher
As in 2022 and 2023, highly pathogenic avian influenza (bird flu) remains a significant cause of rising egg prices. Bird flu is a highly contagious and deadly disease affecting birds, including chickens. The U.S. is deealing with a “serious outbreak”, said Brian Moscogiuri, vice president of Eggs Unlimited, an egg supplier. The disease first appeared in the U.S. in late 2021 and has persisted.
This year alone, bird flu has led to the loss of approximately 33 million commercial egg-laying chickens, based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Half of these deaths – 15 million birds – have occurred after mid-October, causing wholesale egg prices to jump by 97%, according to Expana, an agricultural market research firm.
“If you have one infection, chances are that near all the birds are infected, or will be infected in a very short time”, said Andrew Novakovic, a professor of agricultural economics at Cornell SC Johnson College of Business.
Holiday Season Adds to Egg Demand
The bird flu crisis coincides with the year’s peak season for egg consumption. “Q4 is when we typically see the strongest demand for eggs as consumers tend to bake around the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays”, said Ryan Hojnowski, an egg analyst at Expana.
The combination of limited supply and high seasonal demand has led to the current price spikes. However, experts expect prices may soften after the holidays. “When we get past this holiday effect, I think we’ll see some [price] softening”, Novakovic said.