March 9 (UPI) -- The Justice Department said Sunday it is investigating the skyrocketing cost of eggs, which producers have blamed on the latest outbreak of avian flu.

Investigators said they are looking at whether egg producers are being transparent with their production costs, according to the advocacy group Farm Action.

"We applaud the Department of Justice's action to address the skyrocketing price of eggs. Every American has felt the financial pain caused by the power of the monopolistic egg industry," Farm Action president and CEO Joe Maxwell said in a statement. "While avian flu is real, it is no excuse for the price being charged at the grocery store for one of the country's staples."

Maxwell said the group's analysis uncovered antitrust abuses by dominant U.S. egg producers.

Additional research by the advocacy group Food and Water Watch has alleged price collusion in the rising costs of eggs and poultry. A new report by the group says egg prices are up sharply, but have been rising since before the recent outbreak of bird flu, despite the fact that egg production costs have remained relatively flat.

The Trump administration investigation is being carried out by the Antitrust Division of the Justice Department and would not likely lead to any legal action.

The investigation is the latest in a series of steps taken by Washington lawmakers to get to the bottom of skyrocketing egg prices.

Last month, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., called on the Trump administration to look into egg prices, following up on his promise to lower food prices, which was a cornerstone of Trump's presidential campaign.

"To make food more affordable, you should look to the dominant food and grocery companies that have made record profits on the backs of working families who have had to pay higher prices," Warren and her colleagues wrote in the letter to Trump. "These companies often exploit crises like pandemics and avian flu outbreaks as an opportunity to raise prices beyond what is needed to cover rising costs."

Egg prices have doubled since January 2024. Recent data from the Department of Agriculture shows wholesale costs have dropped from $8 a dozen to $6.85, but remain well above historical averages.

Egg producers argue that accusations of price gouging and collusion are misguided and false, and that price spikes are dependent on volatile market conditions.

"Make no mistake. Egg farmers are price takers, not price makers, on the egg market, and that market is responding to the uncertainty and chaos bird flu is causing," said Emily Metz, president and CEO of American Egg Board, which represents U.S. egg producers. "Eggs are subject to the economic laws of supply and demand. The tight egg supply caused by avian influenza, coupled with 23 consecutive months of high sales volume, has created a perfect storm in egg markets."

Profits jumped 82% for Cal-Maine, the nation's largest egg producer, between the first and second fiscal quarters of this year.

"Cal-Maine's CEO acknowledged that the company's higher-than-estimated net income for Q2 'reflect[s] higher market prices, which have continued to rise this fiscal year as supply levels of shell eggs have been restricted.' Translation: the egg company and its shareholders are making higher profits while Americans shell out more for grocery staples," Warren wrote.

The company's profits also tripled in 2022 and 2023 during a previous outbreak of the avian flu, USDA data show. Then Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan called for an investigation.

USDA details new plan to tackle bird flu and lower egg prices