Eggs can be found — however pricier — as the vacation baking season begins

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By DEE-ANN DURBIN, JOSH FUNK and MARK VANCLEAVE

Egg costs are rising as soon as extra as a lingering outbreak of chicken flu coincides with the excessive demand of the vacation baking season.

However costs are nonetheless removed from the latest peak they reached virtually two years in the past. And the American Egg Board, a commerce group, says egg shortages at grocery shops have been remoted and short-term to this point.

“These are being quickly corrected, generally inside a day,” stated Emily Metz, the Egg Board’s president and chief government officer.

The typical worth for a dozen eggs in U.S. cities was $3.37 in October, in keeping with the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That was down barely from September, and down considerably from January 2023, when the common worth soared to $4.82. But it surely was up 63% from October 202, when a dozen eggs value a median of $2.07.

Metz stated the egg trade sees its highest demand in November and December.

“You possibly can’t have your vacation baking, your pumpkin pie, your stuffing, with out eggs,” she stated.

Avian influenza is the primary cause for the upper costs. The present chicken flu outbreak that started in February 2022 has led to the slaughter of greater than 111 million birds, principally egg-laying chickens. Anytime the virus is discovered, each chicken on a farm is killed to restrict the unfold of the illness.

Greater than 6 million birds have been slaughtered simply this month due to chicken flu. They have been a comparatively small a part of the entire U.S. egg-laying flock of 377 million chickens. Nonetheless, the flock is down about 3% over the previous 12 months, contributing to a 4% drop in egg manufacturing, in keeping with the U.S. Division of Agriculture.

The most recent wave of chicken flu is scrambling provides of cage-free eggs as a result of California has been among the many hardest hit states. California, Nevada, Washington and Oregon all require eggs offered of their states to be cage-free.

“We’re having to maneuver eggs from different areas of the nation which might be producing cage-free to cowl that low provide in these states, as a result of these states solely permit for cage-free eggs to be offered,” Metz stated.

Cage-free necessities are set to enter impact in Arizona, Colorado and Michigan subsequent 12 months and in Rhode Island and Utah in 2030.

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