Surging egg prices giving rise to plant-based alternatives
The national average retail price of a dozen eggs climbed to $4.82 in January
Little Rhody Farms owner Eli Berkowitz says egg farmers are concerned that the bird flu 'hasn't gone away.'
Consumers and businesses are increasingly seeking egg alternatives as carton prices continues to skyrocket.
The government's consumer price report, released Tuesday, revealed that egg prices in January jumped 8.5% from a month prior. On an annual basis, prices surged 70%.
The national average retail price of a dozen eggs climbed to $4.82 in January, according to the latest data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. That's up nearly 60 cents from a month prior. However, it's a huge leap from the average of $1.92 reported a year earlier.
Over the past year, egg prices have continued to climb due to inflation and an onslaught of cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza — otherwise known as bird flu. Over 44 million laying hens were killed since February 2022 due to continued outbreaks of bird flu, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Cartoons of extra large eggs are displayed at a Stew Leonard's in Yonkers, New York, in February 2023. (Fox News / Fox News)
However, it's giving rise to the plant-based egg market.
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JUST Egg
Eat Just, which develops and markets plant-based egg alternatives under the brand JUST Egg, saw a 10% increase in U.S. household penetration for its egg alternatives in the four-week period ending Jan. 28, according to its chief revenue officer, Matt Riley.
"We achieved 2.1 million, our highest household number since we've launched nearly four years ago," Riley told FOX Business.
Eat Just found a plant that scrambles like an egg. (Business Wire)
Riley said the company is selling more products in retailers than ever before and that its prices have "remained stable over the past 13 four-week periods," averaging about $4.30.
Although that's currently cheaper than the national average retail price for a dozen eggs, Riley admitted that the company's prices could climb, given the "inflationary headwinds" it's facing.
Even so, 90% of consumers have noticed "that conventional egg prices are ridiculously high" Riley said, citing a January survey commissioned by Eat Just.
"More importantly, nearly 80% said 'we're going to do something different' … and within that group, 40% said plant-based options are part of that change," Riley added.
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Made from a unique blend of plant proteins, Zero Egg scrambles, bakes and fluffs just like an ordinary egg.
Zero Egg
Meanwhile, Zero Egg, which makes egg alternatives for restaurants, colleges and universities as well as hospitals and hotels, told FOX Business that it's "absolutely seeing an uptick" in inquiries from potential customers interested in adding Zero Egg to their menu programming.
This includes several restaurant chains who said they were specifically looking to find a solution to the pricing and availability volatility that factory farming has created in the shell egg market, the company continued.
BIRD FLU OUTBREAKS PUT US POULTRY FARMS ON HIGH ALERT
In January, Zero Egg saw a more than 150% increase in sample requests. The company is also ahead of sales projections for February and it is "seeing that continue as the month continues to unfold," the company said.
It is "seeing customers brace for this becoming the new normal for the egg industry, seeking us as a solution," Zero Egg continued.
Red Star chickens roost in their coop at Historic Wagner Farm in Glenview, Illinois., on Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley / AP Images)
USDA press secretary Marissa Perry told FOX Business that although progress is being made with tackling inflation and food price increases, "USDA economists find that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is one of the primary factors driving the higher egg prices that consumers see in stores."
Likewise, in an open letter Tuesday, egg producer Vital Farms largely blamed these bird flu cases for pumping up prices.
"This isn’t the first time we’ve dealt with a surge in avian influenza, but the most recent variant is particularly contagious and harmful to the birds," Vital Farms CEO Russell Diez-Canseco said. "This drop in supply and the inflation we’ve all experienced over the past year have been key drivers of egg prices."
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Although egg shipments are down across the industry, Diez-Canseco said Vital Farms, which has over 300 family farms, is delivering more eggs than it did a year ago, which "is a big deal in this environment."
Perry also said the "USDA remains committed to working diligently with producers to prevent and respond to HPAI outbreaks among egg-producing flocks and to keep eggs stocked on store shelves for consumers."