We have simply heard Donald Trump’s Treasury secretary Scott Bessent declare that egg costs are down 50% – however is that actually the case?
The worth of eggs within the US has skyrocketed this yr, and even reached a file excessive final month.
It comes after Trump declared final month that egg costs had been “down 35%”.
However the price of eggs remains to be up 75% within the final 12 months in comparison with six different staple grocery objects – hen, orange juice, beef mince, bacon and bread – in response to Sky Information’ US companion community, NBC Information.
The typical worth for a dozen eggs reached $6.23 (£4.82) in March, regardless of a drop in wholesale costs and no egg farms having outbreaks of hen flu.
The nation has been experiencing record-high costs because the starting of the yr, hitting $5.90 in February, in response to the US Bureau of Labour Statistics, greater than double the long-term common of $2 (£1.54).
Why are egg costs so excessive?
One of many major causes behind the worth rise is the outbreak of avian flu, also referred to as hen flu, which the US has been grappling with since 2022.
This yr alone, one particular person has died and farmers have been compelled to slaughter greater than 30 million egg-laying birds – partly right down to a federal authorities coverage that requires farmers to kill their whole flocks any time a hen will get sick.
Greater than 166 million birds have been killed because the outbreak started three years in the past.
Elevated demand, elevated worth
As the specter of hen flu rose, so did the demand for eggs, which in flip triggered the costs to rise.
In the beginning of the yr, eggs reached a then file $4.95 (£3.86) per dozen, in response to knowledge from the Bureau of Labour Statistics.
In some elements of the nation, costs went even larger, with Sky Information’ US companion NBC reporting a peak of $8.64.
Others needed to pay $10 (£7.74), whereas the Related Press mentioned in California the worth per dozen topped $12 (£9.29) in some retailers.
To take care of the rising prices, some eating places, together with the Denny’s and Waffle Home chains, added surcharges to eggs on their menus.
