What experts want shoppers to know about egg prices amid new bird flu implications
Some American shoppers have been scrambling to find grocery store shelves stocked with fresh eggs.
Hundreds of consumers have flocked to TikTok filling the social media platform with videos at major retailers such as Costco, where the popular ingredient is in short supply.
"The only thing that was there was a cart with a couple of boxes of mostly broken eggs," one user shared.
Rising cases of avian influenza -- commonly referred to as bird flu -- have continued to impact egg laying flocks in the U.S. forcing egg suppliers to cut production and in turn causing shortages nationwide, skyrocketing prices.
Almost all confirmed cases in humans involve direct contact with infected cattle or infected livestock and the CDC says there is currently no evidence of human-to-human transmission and the risk to the general public is low.
Brooke Jones, who first shared her own experience on TikTok, told "Good Morning America" that she visited three grocery stores in the Dallas area in search of eggs recently.
"We decided to go out and actually check some different egg sections at stores. And so that's how we came across empty shells, high prices, sign," she said of the placard on the refrigerated case.
According to the latest USDA market data, egg prices are up nearly 38% in the past year with prices spiking 8% just in November due to the high-demand of holiday baking season.
On average, a dozen eggs will cost people $3.65 right now, compared to $2.14 one year ago. Prices have been the cheapest in the south averaging $3.40 per carton and most expensive on the West Coast at $4.20 per carton.
And at the wholesale side of the equation, retailers are buying eggs in California for nearly $9 per carton, according to the USDA report.
One popular San Francisco bakery has been feeling this squeeze and told "GMA" they're not sure when it will get better.
"Since late October prices are just high, high, high," Merie Belluomini, co-ower of Victoria Pastry Company, said. "Today, I was wondering when this was going to stop?"
Kevin Bergquist, a sector manager for the Wells Fargo Agri-Food Institute, told "GMA" that "egg prices just set a record in the past couple of weeks."
"The highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is the main driver. As the total egg-laying flock size is impacted, egg supplies are constrained, which is driving up prices," he explained.
He also noted that "wholesale egg prices do not necessarily reflect consumer egg prices at the grocer, which can vary widely."
"The spike in late December hit a new record level that has carried over into 2025," Bergquist said. "Higher prices are driven by a lack of supply, which is a result of lower egg-laying flock numbers."
