Chicken Little? Not so fast, say egg prices!

Chicken Little ? Not so fast, say egg prices!

Amanda Zaluckyj*

Photo : Pixabay on Pexels.com

The story of Chicken Little [Petit Poulet au Québec] is well known. An acorn falls on his head and he then believes that the sky is falling on his head. He freaks out all his neighbors by telling them regarding the incident. And then, of course, the sky doesn’t really fall. This tale is a warning once morest alarmism and people who feed fear.

I write a lot regarding how events can influence agriculture, from farm to table. A change in California law will drive prices up across the country? The new regulations of theEPA on pesticides will lower yields? China’s policy will curb the use of agricultural technology? Can food marketing harm people with lower socio-economic means? I always try to explain how agricultural issues will impact all of us.

But some people have accused me of being a Chicken Littlea chicken wet. California law changes do not increase prices! The decisions of theEPA have nothing to do with yields! China cannot influence world markets! And no one really pays attention to marketing labels! This is just alarmism!

So, with that in mind, let’s talk regarding the price of eggs. Eggs are one of the cheapest and most nutritious sources of protein. But the price of eggs skyrocketed in December 2022, with some increases exceeding 60%. Although prices began to fall, rising egg prices sparked a flurry of online memes, some grocery stores warned of shortages and consumers refused to buy their usual dozen.

The bird flu epidemic is the cause. Since February 2022, it has killed around 60 million birds. According to’American Egg Boardthere are regarding 6% fewer laying hens on US farms than before the outbreak.

As I mentioned, we are already seeing an increase in herds, an increase in production and a drop in prices. Comparatively, eggs remain an affordable source of protein. The sky is not falling on our heads, even if we are witnessing short-term economic adjustments.

But that’s why I talk regarding what impacts agriculture. Not all my concerns will materialize. Not everything will make people react. Yet farmers’ concern regarding these issues is real. We are not trying to fuel alarmism. We’re just trying to put things into perspective. This time it turned out to be justified.

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* Amanda Zaluckyj blogs as The Farmer’s Daughter USA. Its goal is to promote farmers and counter the misinformation that swirls around the US agribusiness industry.

Source : Chicken Little? Egg Prices Say Not-So-Fast – The Farmer’s Daughter USA (thefarmersdaughterusa.com)