The letter from Farm Action, linked at the top of the article, is pretty compelling in making their case.
A few highlights:
> As a result of the smaller flock, egg production has dropped slightly from 8.1 billion eggs per month in 2021 to 7.75 billion eggs per month in December 2024. Importantly, however, per capita production of eggs in the U.S. has not dipped below per capita consumption of eggs in any year between 2022 and the present. Meanwhile, the total value of egg production has risen significantly, from $8.8 billion in 2021 to $19.4 billion in 2022 and $17.9 billion in 2023.
Note the $17.9B 2023 figure obviously doesn't include the most recent price increases.
> Instead of using the windfall profits they are earning from record egg prices to rebuild or expand their egg-laying flocks, the largest egg producers are using them to buy up smaller rivals and further consolidate market power.
> Almost all shell eggs are marketed through contracts between producer firms and chain buyers where egg prices are based on weekly wholesale quotes published by Urner Barry, an industry consulting and data analytics firm. According to leading industry commentator Simon M. Shane, this convergence "on a single commercial price discovery system constitutes an impediment to a free market," with the benchmark prices released by Urner Barry potentially serving to amplify price swings led by the largest-volume producers and to prevent independent, competitive decision making by others.
Much of the rise in prices has occurred in January and February. Seems likely to me that culling has continued due to bird flu and production has dropped.
I would also guess that demand is fairly constant for eggs, so large changes in price are needed to deter a small number of consumers from buying (low elasticity of demand).
"rebuilding" a laying flock is a fairly quick change, if the infrastructure is already there.
> per capita production of eggs in the U.S. has not dipped below per capita consumption of eggs in any year between 2022 and the present
Because people can't buy eggs that don't exist.
Imports?
Good point. I didn't imagine a lot of egg imports happened.
I worked at a large 3PL during an avian flu about 10 years ago. We gained a large customer because we gave them a plan to import huge quantities of eggs from overseas (mostly Europe) via ship. Managing them through ports in both ends and over the road across the country, eggs still in shells, needing constant refrigeration and unbroken chain of documentation was a monumental task. It kept them in business egg with their largest retailers, but I’m still not sure it was worth the expense/effort.
In the years since, they would export. Egg whites stayed in the US, and egg yolks would go to Europe. American consumers don’t want yolks.
US has an egg import deal with Turkey, no? https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/international/turkey-export...
Sounds like collusion through a third party. Similar to the landlords all signing up to the same pricing service.
Same play as the meat industry leveraging "data analytics" to fix and sort at https://www.agristats.com/.
[1]https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/four-states-join-jus...
[2]https://farmaction.us/2023/10/12/food-price-fixing-is-still-...