A Lesson in Egg-Onomics: Tracing the Trouble with U.S. Egg Prices

Avian influenza has continued to devastate poultry flocks across the U.S., as consumers have been left to deal with empty shelves at grocery stores, record-high egg prices, and no end in sight to an issue that’s been at the center of the country’s political discourse for months. 

The U.S. avian flu epidemic has affected more than 130 million total birds since it began, making it the largest outbreak of the disease in the country’s history. Most recently, in the fall of 2024, spikes in the disease on East Coast farms led to the culling of 20 million chickens, which accounted for roughly 6.5% of the country’s 300 million egg-laying hens. That led to an 8.4% increase in retail egg prices for the single month of December, contributing to a 36.8% year-over-year bump, according the U.S. Census Bureau. The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects that trend to continue well into 2025, predicting another 20.3% rise in prices by the time the year is out. 

But why is it that the price of eggs is seen as such a key indicator of economic health in the United States? First and foremost, there’s a short list of foods that stick in the minds of the everyday American when it comes to building out a grocery budget, and eggs are chief among them. 

“They’re a fundamental staple,” says Keith Cooper, the leader of the food, agriculture & beverage practice at F…