① Recently, signs of a resurgence of bird flu have been discovered again in farms in the United States, Japan and other places. ② Currently, in addition to the US and Japan, egg prices have soared in Europe, Mexico, Indonesia, etc., and many consumers have even begun to stock up on eggs.
Financial Services Association, April 25 (Editor Liu Rui) At the end of 2022, the “deadliest bird flu in history” once caused egg prices to soar in many countries around the world. Although the effects of this bird flu have subsided for most of 2023, signs of a resurgence of bird flu have recently been discovered in farms in the US, Japan, and other places.
Currently, in addition to the US and Japan, egg prices have soared in Europe, Mexico, Indonesia, etc., and many consumers have even begun to stock up on eggs. As more and more chicken farms cull laying hens on a large scale, egg prices may continue to rise in the short term.
Avian influenza is making a comeback in the US and Japan
At the beginning of March this year, goats on a farm in Minnesota in the US were diagnosed with the avian influenza virus H5N1. This is the first case of livestock infection in the US. Over the next ten days, cases of the bird flu virus were detected in dairy cows in at least eight states in the United States. At the beginning of this month, the US Texas state government and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also announced a human case of H5N1 avian influenza infection.
The spread of the bird flu virus will cause mass death of birds. According to data from the US Department of Agriculture, at least 8 million birds have been infected in US chicken farms in the past 30 days.
Two weeks ago, due to the bird flu outbreak, California's largest egg producer Cal-Maine Foods (Cal-Maine Foods) temporarily halted production and culled more than 1 million chickens at one of its plants.
In addition to the US, in Japan, poultry farms in several prefectures have reported cases of bird flu, and the cumulative number of infections has reached hundreds of thousands.
David Anderson, a professor of agricultural economics at Texas A&M University in the US and a food economist, said, “Highly pathogenic avian influenza has hit chicken farms, causing the death of laying hens and a decrease in egg production, causing egg prices to soar.”
Bird flu is not the only factor affecting egg prices. The recent rise in meat prices in the US has also led to an increase in demand for eggs.
Anderson said, “Retail prices for beef, pork, and chicken have reached record highs, and eggs are seen as substitutes for these meats, which also means egg prices will rise.”
Egg prices have soared in many countries around the world
Currently, in the US, the price of a dozen A-grade large eggs in the US is 2.41 US dollars (about RMB 17.46), which is already 10% higher than the price at the beginning of the year.
Japan is also a major egg consumer, ranking second in the world in terms of egg consumption per capita. Under the influence of bird flu, the price of medium eggs in Japan has risen from 179 yen (about 8.33 yuan) per kilogram at the beginning of the year to around 218 yen (about 10.15 yuan) per kilogram on April 17, an increase of more than 20%.
From Mexico to Norway to Indonesia, egg prices are also rising — of course, the reason behind this isn't just bird flu.
Mexico has the highest consumption of eggs per capita in the world. According to local media reports, recent hot weather in Mexico caused a large number of hens to die from heat stroke, causing egg prices to rise.
Representatives of Mexico's main wholesale market Central de Abastos revealed that due to the intense heatwave, the price of eggs in the country rose 30% weekly to 45 pesos per kilogram (approximately RMB 19.06). On April 15, the temperature in Mexico once soared to a record high.
Indonesia is the second-largest producer of eggs in the world. According to data from Indonesia's National Food Authority, the price of eggs in the country has also risen by more than 10% since the beginning of this year.
“Many countries and regions around the world, such as the US, the European Union, Russia, South Africa, India and Nigeria, are facing the highest egg price levels in history,” said Nan-Dirk Mulder (Nan-Dirk Mulder), senior analyst at Rabobank.
Consumers have begun to stock up on eggs
As egg prices soar, both Americans and Europeans have begun to stock up on eggs in advance.
An American user said on social media platform X, “I'm stocking up on eggs because I think eggs will rise to 7 dollars (about 50.73 yuan) a dozen in a few weeks.”
He also added in his response: “My biggest concern right now is whether egg prices will soar like last year if the bird flu pandemic has a big enough impact on the supply chain (for example, through mass culling of chicken flocks).”
Another netizen also mentioned that he started to stock up on chicken and eggs: “Remember, if you do it right, you can freeze eggs for a year.”
In addition to Americans, there are also Norwegians “multinational egg hoarders”: during Easter (March 31), many Norwegians flocked to neighboring Sweden to buy and stock eggs in large quantities there because there is a serious shortage of eggs in Norway.
According to a local research database, the consumer price of eggs in Norway rose 17.4% in March.