US retail egg costs fell in April for the primary time in months – although a dozen nonetheless prices far more than it did a 12 months in the past.
The typical value for a dozen Grade A eggs plunged 12.7% in April to $5.12, in line with the Client Value Index.
That’s the primary month-to-month decline in egg costs since October 2024.
However client egg costs are nonetheless 79% greater than they had been final April, when a dozen bought for simply $2.86, as flocks throughout the nation proceed to get well from the worst chicken flu outbreak in US historical past.
When the avian flu infects a chicken, whether or not on a poultry farm or in a yard coop, it spreads at such a speedy tempo that producers are pressured to cull the complete flock.
It’s killed greater than 169 million birds since early 2022, pushing the retail value of eggs to a record-high of $6.23 in March.
At the very least 10 chicken flu outbreaks have been reported over the previous month, together with two large ones in South Dakota and Ohio, hitting flocks of 633,900 and 293,300, respectively, in line with the Facilities for Illness and Management.
However outbreaks seem like slowing over the previous few weeks, serving to egg costs to return down barely.
The 90-day pause on most of President Trump’s tariffs, which took impact final month, has additionally seemingly aided the value cooldown, since a major quantity of chicken feed, cages and farm tools are imported from nations like Russia and Ukraine, in line with meals science advisor Bryan Quoc Le.
The White Home on Monday introduced it had reached an identical take care of China to pause greater charges for 90 days.
In the meantime, main egg producers are going through elevated scrutiny from the Division of Justice, which is investigating whether or not firms colluded to limit provide and preserve costs artificially excessive, in line with the Wall Road Journal.
“There’s only so many egg manufacturers and there’s a bit of a pseudo-monopoly,” Le informed The Put up.
“I certainly do think all these players are considering – if someone’s going to keep the prices up, we should probably all keep the prices up.”
