US egg prices increase to record high, dashing hopes of cheap eggs by
Easter
[April 11, 2025] By
JOSH FUNK and DEE-ANN DURBIN
U.S. egg prices increased again last month to reach a new record-high of
$6.23 per dozen despite President Donald Trump’s predictions, a drop in
wholesale prices and no egg farms having bird flu outbreaks.
The increase reported Thursday 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 because 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.
The bird flu effect
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 $5.90 in February one month after setting a record at
$4.95 per dozen, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The farms that had fall outbreaks have been working to resume egg
production after sanitizing 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 U.S. Department of Agriculture 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 because massive egg
farms may have millions of birds.
Egg price politics
Trump tried to take credit for the lower wholesale egg prices the USDA
reported in recent weeks.
“The egg prices they were going through the sky. And you did a fantastic
job,” Trump said to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins before he
announced the details of his tariffs at the White House last week. ”Now
we have lots of eggs and they are much cheaper now.”
But experts say the president’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 Agriculture Department tried to find egg imports to add to the
supply and nearly 4 million dozens of eggs were brought into the country
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.
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Cartons of eggs sit on a shelf in a Walmart store, March 10,
2025, in Englewood, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
“I think there are lots of people
who are looking to see the egg prices coming down because they
wanted to call it a win. And I think it’s a loss for everybody. I
think we all want to see egg prices come down,” Thompson said.
Rollins on Thursday 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 U.S. 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.”
Earlier this week, Trump said the annual White House egg roll would
use real eggs again this year despite the high prices. Egg farmers
typically donate more than 30,000 eggs for the event.
Egg prices around the country
U.S. 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 $5.98 per dozen
the week beginning March 16 and dropped to $5.51 the week beginning
March 30.
But prices vary widely around the country, depending on the location
of recent bird flu outbreaks and some state laws requiring eggs to
be cage-free. At a Walmart in Richmond, California, a dozen eggs
were $6.34 on Thursday. In Omaha, Nebraska, Walmart was selling eggs
for $4.97 per dozen. California requires eggs sold to be cage-free;
Nebraska doesn't.
The latest numbers could increase scrutiny of Cal-Maine Foods, which
provides 20% of the nation’s eggs, and other large egg producers.
Earlier this week, Cal-Maine acknowledged it is being investigated
by the antitrust division of the U.S. Department of Justice, which
is looking into egg price increases. Cal-Maine said it is
cooperating with the investigation.
In its most recent quarter, which ended March 1, Cal-Maine said its
net income more than tripled to $508.5 million compared to the same
period a year ago.
Faking it
The price of real eggs has some consumers turning to fake ones for
Easter crafts this year.
Craft retailer Michaels said sales of its plastic egg craft kits —
which were listed for $2.49 on the company's website Thursday — are
up 20% over last year. Michaels said sales usually peak closer to
Easter, but it started seeing a noticeable uptick in early March
this year.
“With a little over a week still to go until Easter, our craft egg
kits are nearly sold out,” the company said.
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Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani contributed to this report.
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