Bird Flu Outbreak Drives Egg Prices to Record Highs

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF)– Egg prices have shocked many shoppers recently, as they’ve reached about $7 per dozen in Tennessee.

This price surge is largely due to the ongoing bird flu outbreak, which has led to the deaths of millions of chickens across the country, causing severe disruptions in egg production.

Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension Agent Haley Treadway explains the risks associated with the virus, stating, “What we’re seeing is the highly pathogenic influenza. The latest strain, H5N1, came to North America in February 2022, and this is spread through waterfowl and wild birds. With that comes all kinds of risks and opportunities for infection all across the country.”

As poultry farms struggle to contain outbreaks, the egg shortage has intensified, pushing prices even higher.

Treadway highlights that this upward trend is expected to continue.

“We’re going to continue to see those prices rise as production continues to be disrupted from outbreaks across the country. What we’re looking at right now is prices steadily increasing to a little over $7 per dozen at the end of this quarter and about $9 per dozen within 12 months at a time.”

With egg prices at an all-time high, grocery stores and restaurants have begun limiting purchases to manage supply shortages:

• Costco is restricting customers to three packages.
• Trader Joe’s has capped purchases at one dozen per day per customer.
• Selected Kroger locations are restricting sales based on local availability.
• Waffle House has introduced a 50-cent charge per egg to offset rising costs.

According to The Associated Press, some consumers are already paying more than $10 per dozen, particularly for organic and cage-free eggs.

While the industry struggles to stabilize, Treadway emphasizes the importance of biosecurity for backyard chicken owners to help prevent further spread of the virus.

“Sanitation. We don’t want to share tools with our neighbors, or if we do, we want to make sure they are very, very clean. We want to control traffic, so we really don’t want a lot of visitors and outside individuals coming into our chicken coops. And then isolation– we don’t want our birds co-mingling with wild birds.”

While Treadway hopes the bird flu outbreak eventually fades, she warns that it could take a while before the market stabilizes. Until then, consumers should prepare for continued price increases and purchase restrictions.