Egg prices dropping just in time for Easter
AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Egg prices are dropping just in time for Easter, and that downward trend should continue following the holiday, according to Agrilife Today, the Texas A&M digital magazine.
Although egg price reach their peak around the holiday, prices have been on a "downward trend in recent months," according to Agrilife.
"Wholesale prices fell from $8.51 to $3.84, or 55%, between March 1 and March 29," said David Anderson, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension economist and professor at Texas A&M.
Although consumer demand for eggs is high around Easter, Anderson told the publication he was "interested to see how egg prices trend after the holiday." He added that the nature of the egg market prices "can go up and down really fast."
Anderson said a dozen large eggs cost more than $5 in December 2022 and then "dropped to 84 cents per dozen by May 2023."
This all comes after egg prices "skyrocketed to record highs" due to the avian influenza, also known as HPAI, outbreaks, according to Agrilife.
That then raised the prices for large Grade A eggs to "an all-time average high of $6.14 per dozen in January," according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The Associated Press reported Thursday that egg prices hit $5.90 in February. That comes after one month of setting a record at $4.95 per dozen, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
More than 168 million birds have been slaughtered since the bird flu outbreak, according to the AP.
"Any time a bird gets sick, the entire flock is killed to help keep bird flu from spreading. That can have an effect on the egg supply because massive egg farms may have millions of birds," the AP said.
In the USDA's latest numbers Thursday, "there were only 285 million hens laying eggs nationwide as of March 1." The flock is usually around 315 million, the AP reported.
“Easter is a big holiday; we typically see a price bump based on egg demand for those traditional family gatherings,” Anderson told Agrilife. “The question is, are people going to put out more plastic eggs for the Easter egg hunt and maybe skip the deviled eggs this year because of high prices?”