Severe outbreaks of bird flu in the United States and France are tightening global egg supplies and raising prices for the food staple, even as the war in Ukraine disrupts shipments.
Bird flu in the U.S. has wiped out more than 19 million egg-laying chickens (about six per cent of the national flock) on commercial U.S. farms this year in the worst outbreak since 2015. France, meanwhile, is suffering its worst outbreak ever. About eight per cent of egg-laying hens have been culled.
Wholesale prices for large eggs in the U.S. Midwest reached their second-highest level, almost double from a year earlier on the spot market, data firm Urner Barry said.
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In France, wholesale shell egg prices have climbed 69 per cent from last year, French farm office FranceAgriMer said. As a result, consumers could see higher prices for food products made with eggs.
Egg prices are expected to stay elevated, producers said, as it will take months to resume operations on infected farms. Infections also hamper work at facilities producing ingredients like dried eggs and liquid eggs.
–With files from Lisa Barrington and Alexander Cornwell
