Wholesale egg prices hit record highs last year, and so did cases of High Path Avian Flu with more than 43 million egg-laying hens taken out by the virus here in the U.S.
According to USDA, in the final weeks of December 2022, weekly egg inventories were down 29 percent compared to the start of the year and prices hit a high of $5.37 a dozen. Since then, the egg-laying flock has recovered as APHIS reports a sharp decline in cases this year.
As a result, wholesale egg prices have also fallen, hitting just 89 cents in the first week of May this year. At the end of June, egg inventories were around 24 percent higher than the lowest levels seen last year with the average price for a dozen eggs hovering around $1.23.
The department is expecting wholesale egg prices to level off as demand falls in the summer with consumers baking less often.
