Egg Shortage: As Prices Climb 15%, Stores Nationwide Begin To Ration Egg Purchases

Topline

Egg prices rose more than 15% from December to January, marking the largest increase in egg prices in 10 years, the government data showed earlier this week—as bird flu continues to hurt the nation’s poultry supply and some grocery chains limit egg purchases.

Timeline

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Big Number

53%. That’s how much higher egg prices were in January 2025 than the previous January, according to the Consumer Price Index released Feb. 12.

Are There Limits On How Many Eggs You Can Buy?

In addition to Trader Joe’s, grocery chains including Walmart and Sam’s Club have implemented nationwide restrictions on egg purchases, NBC News reported. Walmart told NBC it was restricting purchases of 60-count cartons to two per purchase, but is not restricting smaller quantities of eggs, and Sam’s Club is allowing customers to buy two cartons of each brand of eggs. Some Kroger, Costco, Whole Foods and Aldi stores are limiting egg purchases dependent on locations, as well.

How Have High Egg And Food Prices Been Politicized?

Ahead of November’s presidential election in which President Donald Trump defeated then-Vice President Kamala Harris, Republicans made inflation and how costs had risen under then-President Joe Biden a focal point. Voters largely trusted Trump over Harris to handle the economy, and inflation was a primary issue for many voters: The Associated Press reported about 9 in 10 voters “were very or somewhat concerned about the cost of groceries” and many were still hurting from when inflation hit a four-decade high in mid-2022. When he was campaigning, Trump promised he would end the “inflation nightmare” and bring prices down “very quickly,” though economists warned Trump’s plans of imposing tariffs and deporting workers would not help lower costs for Americans. When asked on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Jan. 26 whether grocery prices would come down, Vice President JD Vance said “prices are going to come down, but it's going to take a little bit of time.” Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., have already jumped on Trump and Vance for not yet lowering prices, writing in a letter to the president on Jan. 26 that he “repeatedly promised” to “lower food prices ‘immediately’ if elected president,” but instead he has “focused on mass deportations and pardoning January 6 attackers,” NBC News reported. Trump’s team pushed back on the criticism and said his actions to “unleash American energy” will drive costs for American families down nationwide.

What Is Bird Flu?

Bird flu refers to the disease caused when an animal or person is infected with avian flu Type A viruses, though it is typically spread between birds and not people. HPAI viruses related to the ongoing outbreaks were first detected in wild aquatic birds, commercial poultry and backyard flocks of poultry in the U.S. beginning in January 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The early 2022 detections were the first time the viruses were found in the U.S. since 2016. Since 2022, every state has been affected by the illness and there have been more than 1,464 poultry outbreaks reported to the CDC. The virus spreads through the mucous, saliva or poop of infected animals.

Where Is Bird Flu?

Bird flu is impacting dairy and poultry throughout the U.S., though some areas have more cases. As of Jan. 24, there were eight bird flu outbreaks across California, North Carolina, Ohio, Missouri and Indiana that had resulted in the loss of 8.3 million birds. That loss accounted for 3.6% of the conventional caged layer flock and 1.5% of the non-organic cage-free flock, according to the USDA’s Egg Market Overview.

What Is The H5n9 Strain Of Bird Flu?

Officials reported the new strain of bird flu was found in a commercial duck meat farm in Merced County, California, in late November according to a report filed with the World Organization for Animal Health this week. More than 118,000 birds were killed and disposed of, according to the report. It’s the first time the strain was detected in the U.S. The Washington Post reported the strain isn’t a grave threat to humans now, but scientists worry the spread of multiple bird flu strains along with other illnesses could produce a version that spreads more easily person-to-person.

Can People Get Bird Flu?

Yes, though it’s not too common. People who get bird flu usually get it through “direct unprotected contact … with infected birds or other infected animals,” the CDC said. Most human cases in the U.S. have been mild and there has been no person-to-person spread traced here, but the U.S. did record its first severe human case of bird flu in Louisiana in December, and the patient later died.

Contra

Though bird flu taking out thousands of egg-laying hens is greatly impacting the price of eggs, it’s not seeming to make a big difference on the price of chicken. The cost of chicken was up just 1.2% year-over-year, and just 0.3% from November to December.

Tangent

A bird flu variant has been spreading through cattle and livestock in the U.S., as well, since April, when the Food and Drug Administration said some samples of pasteurized milk had remnants of H5N1. The outbreak among cattle led to officials in California declaring a state of emergency and suspending the sale of raw milk from a leading raw farm because bird flu was detected in its samples.

Further Reading

Egg prices are soaring. Don't expect that to change anytime soon (Associated Press)

First Bird Flu Death Reported In US (Forbes)

Democrats slam Trump for not making good on promise to ‘immediately’ lower food prices (NBC News)