Agriculture Secretary
Brooke Rollins
reported to journalists on Tuesday morning that egg prices have decreased by almost $2 following the implementation of the Trump administration’s biosecurity measures aimed at combating this issue.
H5N1 bird flu
, which has severely impacted the poultry sector over the past few months.
Last month, Rollins revealed that the
Department of Agriculture
would spend
$1 billion
To reduce the cost of eggs and control the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza.
Along with potentially bringing in as many as 100 million eggs from international sources, Rollins’ strategy also encompassed providing financial support for biosafety initiatives at chicken farms and sustaining investigations into the effectiveness of preventative vaccinations for birds.
We’re more concentrated on reducing egg prices and addressing avian influenza for all,” Rollins informed journalists on Tuesday morning. “Some positive information we received recently over the past couple of days indicates that the average cost of a dozen eggs has decreased by $1.85 since we unveiled our strategy roughly one and a half weeks ago.
As of Tuesday, the average cost for a dozen large white eggs dropped to $6.08, reported the USDA. At the beginning of the month, prices surpassed $8. On Inauguration Day, they stood at $6.27.
A
USDA report
published in February found that egg prices increased by approximately 53% since January 2024. The price of eggs increased by nearly 14% from December to January, on top of an 8% increase from November to December.
Around 160 million chickens have been humanely put down because of the virus in recent months, leading to a significant increase in egg costs.
The USDA Plans to Rehire Recently Terminated Employees Involved in Bird Flu Outbreak Response
Rollins informed journalists on Tuesday that egg prices usually increase in March and April because of the Easter holiday.
“She mentioned that this has always been the peak price for eggs.”
