The egg, one of nature’s purest foods. I still remember as a lad grabbing that wire basket off my grandma’s table and heading out to the chicken coop to collect the eggs the hens had produced from the preceding day.

Collecting was easy if they weren’t in the roost; harder if they were. Some chased easy others decided to have a bad day and take it out on me. Regardless there were always eggs in some shape or form (usually fried) for breakfast. Around Easter time they were stored for a few days so my brothers and sister along with myself could color eggs.

I never thought back in the 1950s that eggs would cause such a commotion, but here in the 2020s it’s one everyone’s minds. So let’s do a dive into the egg situation courtesy of the American Farm Bureau and see what all the crowing is about!

Easter and Passover are just around the corner and if dying eggs for an Easter egg hunt is one of your annual traditions, you may be in for a shock when it comes to egg prices. Egg prices are setting new records in 2025. The combination of inflation and highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has caused egg prices to rise more than 350% per dozen compared to this time last year.

Eggs are considered an inelastic good. This means that even when egg prices change, consumers still buy about the same amount of eggs. Unlike other products, in many applications such as baking, eggs don’t have good substitutes. They are also a healthy – and typically the most affordable – source of protein, which makes them desirable even if prices go up. This relatively unchanging demand for eggs means that supply factors can have a big impact on egg prices.

The loss of egg-laying chickens from avian influenza is driving up egg prices. In the past two years it has affected over 166 million birds including 127 million egg layers. That’s an average loss of 42.3 million egg layers per year, or about 11% of the five-year average annual layer inventory. These losses have resulted in reduced egg supplies and record egg prices. According to USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS), the monthly national average price for large Grade A eggs in March was a record-high $8.15 per dozen. Some 12 million birds, mostly layers, were lost in February, bringing the total number of birds affected so far in 2025 to over 35 million and driving egg prices even higher.

This outbreak has been different than the 2014-2015 outbreak. In 2015, the virus came on strong and basically disappeared after a year affecting over 50 million birds. In past outbreaks of Avian Influenza, we’ve seen hot weather kill off the virus. Instead of disappearing when the seasons change, the virus has continued to circulate in wild birds as well as our nation’s poultry flock. Another difference between the current outbreak and the one that occurred in 2015 is there are a lot more backyard flocks in the U.S. compared to 2015. This means more birds that are vulnerable to getting the virus, and more opportunities for the virus to spread along the flyways where migratory birds travel.

Higher prices for eggs do not mean farmers are getting rich. On the contrary, these prices are a result of the farmer’s loss of millions of birds to disease. USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) does have an indemnity program that provides compensation to the grower or owner for infected or exposed poultry and eggs that are destroyed to control HPAI. However, it can take up to a year for a farm to complete cleaning and raise new chicks to egg-laying age. This indemnity does not cover costs during the time the farm goes without income.

The United States’ primary control and eradication strategy for HPAI in domestic poultry, as defined by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), is de-population. When HPAI is detected, the entire flock is de-populated, for several reasons. When HPAI is present in even one bird in a poultry house or barn, it typically spreads through the whole facility. Another reason is to prevent crossover into other houses on the premises or wild birds that could spread the virus which also leads to a greater risk for mutation.

Inflation is another, if less dramatic, factor driving up egg prices. While inflation has slowed over the last couple of years, it’s important to remember inflation is a measure of growth. Slowing inflation doesn’t mean prices are going down, it means they are getting expensive more slowly.  Inflation does more than drive up the price of eggs in the grocery store, it also raises the cost of everything it takes to produce eggs on the farm and get them on grocery store shelves. Even with higher prices for eggs, input costs and the added risk from HPAI makes being an egg farmer a risky business.

Another elevated supply cost for egg farmers is the price of chicks. Chicks that go on to become egg-laying hens cost more to replace than chicks that are used for meat production, which are called broilers. However, flocks used to provide eggs for laying hens are susceptible to avian influenza just like any other birds. Both sides of poultry production—egg layers and broilers—are suffering from increased replacement costs due to HPAI.

“The difference between involvement and commitment is like ham and eggs. The chicken is involved; the pig is committed.” -Martina Navratilova

Ron Kern is the manager of the Ogle County Farm Bureau.