Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
32 dead, 27 girls at camp missing after catastrophic flooding in Texas. Read the latest Chevron right
Tropical Storm Chantal forms in Atlantic before landfall in South Carolina. Get details Chevron right

Columbus, OH

90°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

90°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Newsletters

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars
Air Quality Alert

News / Business

Egg prices are rising again. An outbreak of bird flu could make things worse

By Bryan Mena, CNN

Updated Apr 3, 2024 2:03 PM EDT

Copied

The average price of a dozen Grade A large eggs was $3 in February, according to the latest Consumer Price Index. (Credit: yipengge/iStockphoto/Getty Images via CNN Newsource)

Washington (CNN) — Egg prices have now been steadily rising for months, and your omelet could become even more expensive as poultry farms around the country deal with an outbreak of bird flu.

The average price of a dozen Grade A large eggs was $3 in February, according to the latest Consumer Price Index, up from around $2 in the fall. While egg prices are down from a record $4.82 in January 2023 — after a widespread bird flu outbreak ravaged farms in the prior year — they’re now at the highest level since April 2023.

And it may not get better anytime soon.

Cal-Maine Foods, America’s largest egg producer, said earlier this week that it culled about 1.6 million hens and 337,000 young chickens after some tested positive for a “highly pathogenic avian influenza” at one of the company’s facilities in Texas, Cal-Maine said in a release. The company produces brands such as Farmhouse Eggs, Sunups, Sunny Meadow, Egg-Land’s Best and Land O’ Lakes eggs.

“Production at the facility has temporarily ceased,” the company said. “[The virus] is still present in the wild bird population and the extent of possible future outbreaks, with heightened risk during the migration seasons, cannot be predicted.”

As egg prices reached a record early last year, Cal-Maine, which controls about 20% of the market, reported a few months later that its revenue doubled and profit surged 718%.

The culling represented about 3.6% of the company’s total flock as of early March. Cal-Maine did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment on what the bird flu outbreak means for its egg prices.

Bird flu has been detected at other farms across the country. Michigan’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development announced Tuesday that it found evidence of bird flu at a commercial poultry facility in Ionia County. Last month, the virus was detected in animals at farms in Texas, Kansas and Minnesota.

“The current risk to the public remains minimal,” Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said in a statement. “It is important for us as an industry to maintain a high level of vigilance. State and national agencies will continue to provide updated guidance as developments warrant.”

If egg producers aren’t able to keep up with demand because they’ve had to cull animals due to bird flu, then that can raise prices. Companies, however, do try to mitigate those effects, but it’s unclear if that would be enough to prevent price hikes altogether.

“Cal-Maine Foods is working to secure production from other facilities to minimize disruption to its customers,” the company said.

The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

Report a Typo
Comments that don't add to the conversation may be automatically or manually removed by Facebook or AccuWeather. Profanity, personal attacks, and spam will not be tolerated.
Comments
Hide Comments

Weather News

Weather News

32 dead in Texas, 27 girls at Camp Mystic missing in flooding

Jul. 5, 2025
video

Rescuers save person clinging to an electric pole amid Texas floods

Jul. 4, 2025
Weather News

Record sargassum seaweed piles up on Caribbean islands, Gulf

Jul. 2, 2025
Weather News

Alabama teen in ICU after lightning strike hits boat, causing burns an...

Jul. 2, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

Top Stories

Weather News

32 dead in Texas, 27 girls at Camp Mystic missing in flooding

2 hours ago

Hurricane

Chantal to make landfall in South Carolina Sunday morning

7 hours ago

Severe Weather

Severe weather to rumble in the central US through the holiday weekend

3 hours ago

Severe Weather

Storms kill 3 in New Jersey, knock out power across Northeast

1 day ago

Weather Forecasts

Heat, humidity return to the East

4 hours ago

More Stories

Featured Stories

Weather News

Wildfires are tearing through a popular tourist hotspot in Greece

1 day ago

Weather News

‘Shark Whisperer’ swims its way into our shark obsession

1 day ago

Travel

Fourth of July gas hasn’t been this cheap since 2021

4 days ago

Weather News

What makes fireworks burst with vibrant colors?

1 day ago

Health

There is no safe amount of processed meat to eat, new research shows

2 days ago

AccuWeather Business Egg prices are rising again. An outbreak of bird flu could make things worse
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...