Egg prices rising again amid lingering bird flu, shifting farm costs

LONG LAKE, Minn. — Minnesota shoppers may be experiencing some sticker shock as eggs again emerges as a hot commodity.
According to the USDA, the average wholesale price for a dozen large Grade A eggs reached $4.26 in the Midwest region. That’s up $0.09 since last week, but up roughly 20% compared to what was recorded in last summer’s consumer price index.
“I’m not surprised by the volatility,” Loree Kinney, store director at the Orono Market explained. “There’s volatility in milk, there’s volatility in dairy products, and in meat. There’s not much you can do about the supply and demand.”
Indeed, economists have for months pointed to a bird flu outbreak as a key reason for dwindling supplies of eggs across the U.S. coming from major producers.
At Gregor Farm and Greenhouse in Medina, Patty Gregor tends to a flock of roughly 60 chickens.
“We watch feed costs and what is in the feed,” Gregor said. “We have to maintain good quality feed for the chickens to lay, and then watching what happens environmentally with bird flu.”
Gregor currently sells a dozen eggs for $5, but that’s significantly less than one brand of pasture raised organic eggs at Orono Market which is on the shelf for nearly $9. 
According to Kinney, though, that carton of eggs comes from a farm in Missouri, underscoring another factor in costs: transportation.
“If you look at where the eggs come from and how far they travel to get to the store, and that’s true on any product, if it’s local you’ll pay less because of transportation,” she said. “For the winter, in Minnesota I believe it’s going to be less expensive on some items because we’re more prepared for the cold weather and huge shifts in climate than other places that are too hot, too cold or too rainy.”