Ever since the pandemic, egg prices have skyrocketed. At first, it was simply a supply vs. demand situation. People stuck at home bought up all the eggs for baking projects, family breakfasts and general panic buying. I had to get to the store at the crack of dawn (pun intended) to find any eggs at all.
Things calmed down after a few months and people’s interest in baking or cooking anything waned. But egg prices had reached a new price – about twice what they had cost prior to the pandemic.
I was not surprised. Prices shoot up quickly but go back down slowly, if ever.
Now, 3 years later, the news reports there’s an avian flu killing chickens and that egg prices are rising. Eggs are now over $4/dozen. Here’s a recap of prices I’ve seen:
Pre pandemic – $.99/dozen
Early pandemic – $3/dozen
Mid pandemic – $2-$2.50/dozen
Today – $4/dozen and up.
Is it really the avian flu? Or increased labor costs? Inflation? Supply and demand?
Those are all convenient excuses. But I’m calling bullshit.
The major egg suppliers are reporting 2x profits in the past year. They have realized that they can blame price increases on multiple factors while arbitrarily raising the prices without impacting sales.
It is simple greed.
Now that prices are increasing exponentially, the news is reporting egg prices on a daily basis like they do with gasoline prices – thus adding fuel to the fire of panic buying and hand wringing.
The thing is, as much as I despise being taken advantage of, eggs quadrupling in price means I’m paying an extra $3 a week. It pisses me off, but it is literally $3 a week difference to me.
If it bothers me enough, I’ll eat fewer eggs or stop buying them altogether. I’ve done this with diet soda, roast beef and steak already.
But, I have a prediction. The egg wholesalers will keep pushing the prices up, the middlemen and grocery stores will keep adding their margins until people stop buying.
Once the market reaches the “go f**k yourself, I’m not paying that” level, it will start to drop back down. A little. I suspect when all is said and done, we will see eggs fall to $2.50/dozen sometime in 2023. People will feel it’s a relief to only pay 250% more than what it cost pre pandemic. Eggs suppliers will still be making 150%-200% more profits.
Then Congress will start holding hearings on egg monopolies and price gouging. They will pontificate about the “working class” and nutrition and the middle class. They’ll ease millions grilling CEOs of the biggest egg companies.
And not a damn thing will happen except we’ll be paying more for eggs and the government will have wasted untold millions for the congressional investigations staged so they can play to the cameras for sound bites.