Wholesale egg prices are up about 40% since the start of a major recall, and consumers will likely see increases at the store, too, industry analysts say.
The wholesale price for a dozen large eggs in the Northeast is up 38% since the first salmonella-inspired recall on Aug. 13, says market researcher Urner Barry Publications.

Urner Barry tracks prices nationwide. Other regions have seen similar increases, says Richard Brown, vice president. In the past five years, egg prices rose 9% from early to late August as kids returned to school, Brown says.

Retailers may not have passed all or any of the increases on to consumers. But they will, predicts Len Steiner, industry analyst with SteinerConsulting.com.

“We know the prices will go up. We don’t know how much,” Gene Gregory, CEO of the United Egg Producers, said Tuesday in Des Moines.

The recalled product, about 550 million eggs, accounts for less than 1% of U.S. production, United Egg Producers says. But supply disruptions can have a big impact on prices if demand doesn’t drop as fast, because eggs can’t be frozen or stored for long, said Dave Harvey, an Agriculture Department economist. He doesn’t think the recall will have a major impact on prices and demand if it’s limited.

(Source: USA Today)