Eggs at the bargain grocery store Aldi were $8.49 a dozen in Tustin on Sunday, Jan. 5. The bird flu has culled millions of egg-laying chickens nationwide, forcing up prices amid strong demand from consumers. In California, the average price for a dozen eggs on Monday, Jan. 6 was $8.97. (Samantha Gowen/SCNG)
A dozen jumbo eggs at Smart & Final in Tustin cost $11.99 on Sunday, Jan. 5. The bird flu has culled millions of egg-laying chickens nationwide, forcing up prices amid strong demand from consumers. In California, the average price for a dozen eggs on Monday, Jan. 6 was $8.97. (Samantha Gowen/SCNG)
Eggs at Trader Joe’s have been fairly steady in supply and are among some of the cheapest in Southern California at $2.99 for a dozen Grade A large eggs. In Tustin, the supply was going fast on Sunday, Jan. 5. The bird flu has culled millions of egg-laying chickens nationwide, forcing up prices amid strong demand from consumers. In California, the average price for a dozen eggs on Monday, Jan. 6 was $8.97. (Samantha Gowen/SCNG)
A dozen eggs at Smart & Final in Tustin cost $7.46 on Sunday, Jan. 5. The bird flu has culled millions of egg-laying chickens nationwide, forcing up prices amid strong demand from consumers. In California, the average price for a dozen eggs on Monday, Jan. 6 was $8.97. (Samantha Gowen/SCNG)
Empty egg section at Costco in San Clemente, Calif., on Jan. 6, 2025. (Staff photo by Jonathan Lansner/SCNG)
Show Caption1 of 5Eggs at the bargain grocery store Aldi were $8.49 a dozen in Tustin on Sunday, Jan. 5. The bird flu has culled millions of egg-laying chickens nationwide, forcing up prices amid strong demand from consumers. In California, the average price for a dozen eggs on Monday, Jan. 6 was $8.97. (Samantha Gowen/SCNG)
ExpandThere’s no quick fix for soaring egg prices and their limited supply.
The bird flu is ravaging the nation’s egg-laying flock in yet another seasonal upswing for the disease, says Brian Moscogiuri, an analyst who tracks the industry for Irvine-based distributor Eggs Unlimited. Destroying infected birds is slashing the nation’s ability to keep up with demand. It’s a shortfall that will take months to repair.
As a result, the average price of a dozen eggs in California on Monday was $8.97, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That’s more than double the $4.06 price at last year’s start. In 2023, amid another bird flu outbreak, the price of eggs began the year at $7.37, compared with $2.35 at the beginning of 2022 or $1.34 in 2021.
“The virus has returned nearly every spring and fall, mainly through wild migratory birds,” Moscogiuri says. “However, the scope seems to be getting broader, with more types of animals being impacted and potentially aiding the spread.”
The key is the loss of egg makers. Moscogiuri says the industry is down 20 million hens to flu in the past three months out of the nation’s typical 312 million flock. California farmers culled 9 million egg layers in 2024’s last two months alone.
The drop was poor timing, just as holiday demand was percolating.
Daniel Sumner, an agriculture professor at UC Davis, says California prices have surged sharply because state law requires “cage free” living for hens. The current version of this flu has been especially rough on this type of chicken.
Nationally, U.S. consumers are paying $4.81 a dozen to start the year, according to the Urner Barry Egg Index. That’s up $3.20 — or triple – late September’s most recent low. Previous bird flu outbreaks pushed U.S. egg prices to $3.07 in March 2023.
Across Southern California, egg prices vary wildly among merchants, assuming they even have any eggs to sell. Egg shelves are empty on various days everywhere, from small grocers to giants like Trader Joe’s and Costco. And some retailers lucky to have eggs are placing limits on how many a customer can buy.
Moscogiuri hopes that economics will help, noting that “elevated retail prices should help to slow demand, and ultimately allow the market to retreat, but we continue to have a real risk of avian flu into the middle of January.”
His price outlook is not encouraging, as he recalled how slowly 2023’s price bump took to ease.
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The professor notes that food price spikes are common, but the recent flu-driven egg inflation seems different.
“Unlike all outbreaks before 2022, and there were several, this time (the flu) keeps coming back,” Sumner says. “The veterinarians do not seem to know why.”
Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at [email protected]
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