The vice-president of the Eggs Unlimited Brian Mosgiuri explains why the prices of the eggs will continue to skyrocket while the bird flu epidemic slows down production.
Industry experts know that the solution to the current egg crisis will not be a quick solution, but they believe US secretary to agriculture The complete $ 1 billion strategy of Brooke Rollins to solve the problem is an essential step.
Farmers have told Fox Business that they support the targeted effort to protect hens weighted by eggs against highly pathogenic avian flu, otherwise known as the bird flu, believing that this will help stabilize the offer of American eggs and reduce prices.
Rollins’ “five -component strategy” aims to limit the growing number of flambés of flipping birds that started in 2022 and have since decimated herds across the country and have created an important shortage in the US supply to eggs.
As part of its plan, the government agency provides for invest an additional $ 500 million In biosecurity measures, $ 400 million in financial alleviation for affected farmers and $ 100 million for vaccine research. The ministry also seeks to find a way to reduce regulatory charges and explore temporary import options.
The CEO of American Egg Board, Emily Metz, described it as a “critical step” for the industry, stressing that the Americans relied strongly on eggs, as shown by 23 consecutive months of high demand and sales.
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“The five -component approach from the administration to fight avian flu creates a roadmap for recovery for the egg industry,” said Metz.
A grocery worker reorganizes the articles in the eggs section exhausted on January 23, 2025 in Miami, Florida. (Joe Raedle / Getty Images / Getty Images)
The plan to strengthen the biosecurity and prevention measures of already strict diseases of the industry, provides more financial assistance to affected farmers, to finance research on vaccines and therapies for better protection against herds, to remove regulatory charges and to explore temporary solutions to stabilize egg supplies in our egg production system, ” Systemic disturbance not described in the egg production system, “Metz.
The farm employee and chief sciences of the producer of Eggs Versova, Dr. Craig Rowles, told Fox Business that although there is no “rapid solution” to this complex situation, the government plan – announced Wednesday – “is firmly in line with egg farmers that farmers believe that this must happen to approach this devastating epidemic”.
The prices of eggs which should jump more than 40% in 2025: USDA
“In particular, we support the continuous exploration of a complete vaccination strategy which coordinates between industry, animal disease experts, the federal government and our international trade partners. HPAI is a global problemAnd we have to identify global solutions, “said Rowles.
An Eggsa plan with a rack of herbruck poultry. The largest Michigan egg producer specializes in organic and without cage eggs. (Herbruck’s Poultry Ranch)
Garrett Hawkins, president of Missouri Farm Bureau, also called the $ 1 billion package “one step in the right direction” to master this situation. However, he warned that industry and consumers will “be patient and understand that it would take a while to see the Fruit of this plan. “”
The prices of eggs which should jump more than 40% in 2025: USDA
In recent weeks, restaurants and grocers have added supplements or limiting the number of eggs that customers can buy as a epidemic of bird flu continued to wreak havoc on the American egg supply.
As of February 21, the Inspection of the Health of Animals and Plants of the USDA confirmed that there were 36 years ago epidemics in nine states. This has led to a loss of 26.8 million birds since the beginning of 2025. In January only, there were about 18.8 million layers of commercial eggs affected by the bird flu, marking the highest monthly total since the virus began to spread quickly.
The national egg shortage due to the bird flu, signs on an empty shelf at the supermarket, Queens, New York. (Lindsey Nicholson / UCG / Universal Images Group via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Egg prices jumped 15.2% in January, according to the consumer price index of the Labor Department. It was the highest increase in egg prices since June 2015 and has represented almost two thirds of the total monthly increase in food prices, the ministry reported. On an annual basis, egg prices increased by 53%.
The food prospects of the Economic Service (ERS) of the Ministry of Agriculture (ERS) also planned that prices will increase more than 40% in 2025.
Here is a ventilation of the plan:
Biosecurity measures:
As part of the plan, the USDA declared that it would expand its successful evaluations of fauna biosecurity in egg layers installations nationally to protect the farms of wild birds, which, according to the USDA, the cause of 83% of all cases of bird flu. The agency will also extend biosecurity audits, free audits continuing for farms affected by HPAI.
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The USDA will also deploy 20 experts trained to help farms reduce HPAi risks and improve biosecurity, focusing on “protection against propagation by wild birds in addition to lateral propagation”.
Increase relief to affected farmers
The Inspection of the Health Inspection of Animal and Plants of the USDA (APHIS) will continue to compensate farmers who must kill their herds to control the spread of HPAI.
The agency has also said that new programs are explored to help farmers speed up repopulation rate, including means of simplifying the approval process to accelerate recovery.
Elimination of regulatory charges
The USDA will work with the Food and Drug Administration of the United States to examine strategies to extend the offer on the commercial market for eggs. It also plans to minimize charges on farmers and individual consumers who harvest local eggs while working simultaneously with farmers and scientists to develop innovative strategies to limit the extent of depoliaments in HPAI epidemics “.
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The USDA will also educate consumers and the congress on the need to solve the problem of geographic price differences for eggs.
Explore the ways to vaccines, therapies and other strategies
The United States will be “hyper-centered” on the development of new vaccines and treatments to reduce the need to kill laying chickens. They will also improve the way they watch chickens in and around epidemics.
The USDA will also work with other countries to “limit the impacts to export the trade markets of potential vaccination”. It will also work alongside the United States Ministry of Health and Social Services to guarantee public security in mind while exploring new approaches.
They will organize discussions every two weeks and update the public regularly.
