First oil, now eggs: why will its price skyrocket soon?

After olive oil has earned its nickname of liquid gold more than ever, now eggs seem to be getting more and more expensive. He price of eggs became more expensive 25% from August in the European Union and is expected to continue to grow. But why?

According to financial foodInitially the reasons in Europe were a drop in production, and then seasonal recovery in demand. However, promotion bird flu This could lead to an even larger increase.

In the USA we have already had to sacrifice more than 20 million chickens because of this disease. Fewer chickens means fewer chickens, which means fewer eggs. Logically, this leads to higher egg prices since less product is available. While it is true that European farms are not being hit as hard as farms in the United States, there are more and more cases of the disease, so the number is expected to continue to rise in the coming months.

Egg prices are rising in the US, but also in Europe

The current outbreak of bird flu has particularly affected the United States. It is amazing that, contrary to custom, dairy cows are also fattened in this country. However, this does not mean that poultry farms have been spared. Quite the opposite.

Millions of animals have had to be culled to prevent the spread of the disease, but this also means farmers have to sell eggs at higher prices to cope. Every state in the country is experiencing clear inflation in egg prices. Most affected Michigan, South Carolina and Alabamawith inflation of 89%, 75% and 74% respectively. In these states, the current price for a dozen eggs is $4.82, $5.76 and $6.12.

It should be noted that of these states, the single most affected state by avian influenza is Michigan. Currently, the state with the most cases is California, but its egg price inflation barely exceeds 30%. This shows us that there are more factors involved, but also that, in one way or another, all states suffer the consequences.

Therefore, the situation in Europe may worsen. Currently the average price for eggs is 240 euros per 100 kgwhich is roughly equivalent to 2.10 euros per dozen. It’s much cheaper than in the US, but in general it’s always been that way. What’s astonishing is that prices have risen 25% since August 2024 and could continue to rise as supplies are increasingly slowed by bird flu.

What is the situation with bird flu in Europe?

Between January and mid-December 2024, 171 outbreaks of avian influenza on farms. Of these, 21 were laying poultry farms. The global figure is lower than the 476 outbreaks recorded in 2023, but it is clearly rising as 43 new outbreaks were reported in the last two months of the year alone and the situation appears to be getting worse.

With all this, it does not seem that the price of eggs in Europe will rise so catastrophically, but it will survive a certain increase. In fact, it is already doing this. In any case, the rise in price of eggs is not a very serious problem, given the other possible consequences of bird flu. Fortunately, the virus has not yet found a way to spread between people. However, experts are monitoring this very closely, in case this happens and it is necessary to stop its development in time. Either way, it’s unlikely to happen anytime soon, so don’t panic.