What about Trump’s plan of $ 1 billion to lower the price of eggs? | News about agriculture

The US Ministry of Agriculture (USDA) has discovered a new plan to fight bird flu, whose spread has created a serious egg deficiency and caused the egg prices to increase in the US.

The $ 1 billion plan includes financial assistance for poultry farmers, as well as financing new studies for treatment and vaccines. In the short term, the Agency aims to increase egg imports to satisfy demand.

“US farmers need relief, and US consumers need affordable food,” wrote Trump’s secretary of agriculture Brooke Rollins in the introductory of Wall Street Journal. “Every family that fights for the purchase of eggs: we hear you, we fight for you and helps it on the way.”

But how bad is the egg crisis, what are the details of Trump’s price relief plan and if consumers could get relief?

How much do they cost eggs in the US?

On average, about $ 4.95 for a dozen.

This is more and more and more than a price only a year ago, according to a job statistics bureau.

In some major cities, prices are even higher, reaching $ 8 to $ 10 a dozen in Chicago, New York and San Francisco.

Price increasing has transformed daily breakfast into the indulgence of many consumers. Some popular breakfast chains, such as Denny’s and Waffle House, have taken adding to egg dishes. “A simple egg sandwich is like luxury,” said a buyer of a gig in Chicago, Jon Harris, for the Reuters news agency.

Why are prices so high?

Spik is a great consequence Rise in bird flu h5n1 Cases on American poultry farms. Since February 2022. The virus has swallowed all 50 countries and Puerto Rico, hitting more than 1,600 flocks, according to the USA’s service for the inspection of animals and plants.

To prevent further expansion, the whole flock is rejected wherever the viruses are detected. During the crisis, more than 160 million birds were killed, including 30 million this year, a beamed commercial farm and causing large egg shortages.

“If there are no birds to delay eggs … then we have a shortage of offers, and this leads to higher prices due to the dynamics of offer and demand,” explained Jada Thompson, an expert on poultry at the University of Arkansas.

Earlier this year, the number of eggs for storage of eggs in the US was 304 million, which is 11 percent falling from five years ago, USDA states.

What measures was the previous President Joe Biden?

Biden’s administration spent about $ 1.5 billion in the fight against the expansion of H5N1 after being repeated in 2022. followed by a long -standing policy of the US government to abolish the affected poultry population through rejection.

The reduction of the number of chickens caused the egg prices to be constantly climbing during the Biden term – with $ 1.60 a dozen in February 2021. At $ 4.10 in December 2024. The price has been growing since then, reaching $ 4.95 this week.

In addition, Biden has allocated more than $ 600 million to prevent the width of the virus on humans, including monitoring of the disease, treatment of treatment and exploring therapy, diagnostics and innovation of vaccines.

What is different in Trump’s plan?

While Trump’s administration officials blamed the bidets to cause the price of eggs due to the rules of the trigger, USDA stated that it would continue with the same approach.

“There are no predicted changes in our current abolition policy at the moment,” said Rosemary Sifford’s chief veterinary official, Chief Veterinary Office for Animal Inspectorate and USDA.

However, the agency announced a package of plans for $ 1 billion to deal with egg deficiency from different corners.

In a press release on Wednesday, USDA announced that it would spend $ 500 million to increase the biological security of the farm that protect the poultry from H5N1 from wild birds, and $ 400 million to compensate for farmers whose flocks were seized. He also said he would invest $ 100 million for the development of new vaccines, treatments and solutions to protect hens from bird flu and reduce the need for them, as well as improve control during outburst.

In addition, USDA says that it will consider how to remove burdensome industry regulations that increase prices, including for poultry guardians in the yard, and temporarily import more eggs.

Where could they get more eggs now?

Now they produce a vast majority of the eggs it consumes. But with home prices at its peak, now he wants to introduce more.

One country that turns is Turkiye, who expects to deliver 420 million eggs in the United States this year, six times more than last year, according to the central union of Turkish egg producers.

However, this is a small part of the total demand in the US, which was less than half a percent of 109 billion eggs produced in the year that led until November 2024, according to USDA data.

The US government did not designate other countries that he hoped to get more eggs, but historically received some imports from Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and China.

Since 2023, the Netherlands has been the world’s largest egg exporter, selling more than $ 1 billion to eggs abroad, mainly to Germany, according to the observatory of economic complexity. Turkiye, with $ 441 million, took fifth place. He sent most of the egg exports to the bay.

What do experts say in the industry?

Trump’s multiple plan to solve the egg crisis has positively received industrial trade groups.

United egg producers, representing companies that produce more than 90 percent of American eggs, thanked Trump for the “step to take action”.

“President Trump and Secretary USDA B [avian influenza] About the US egg industry by launching resources and expertise where they are most needed, “said Chad Gregory Group President in a statement divided into X.

UEP thanks to President Trump and Secretary Rollins on the dedication to fight the devastating effects of highly pathogenic bird flu #Hpai on us #Eggfarmers With this historic investment of $ 1 billion.

Read our statement about this important initiative. @Usda @Secrolins pic.twitter.com/hgb4tvsole

– United Egg Manufacturers (UEP) 26. February 2025

However, some experts are advocating for a faster introduction of hens vaccines, which currently require long -term control and risk of inadvertently damaging the entire poultry market. This is because some foreign customers do not take poultry from countries that are vaccinated against H5N1, fearing that the vaccine could easily mask the spread of the virus.

“It must seem to me that we will have to start using vaccines if we want to start ejecting this fire,” said Gregory Gray, professor of medical branch of the University of Texas.

Will the prices of eggs fall or continue to grow?

USDA projects egg prices will increase another 41 percent this year.

However, Rollins believes that within a year or two prices will be returned to $ 1.30 to $ 2, a dozen range perceived during Trump’s first term from 2017 to 2021.

At a press conference on February 24, she said “the essence for consumers … is that we will fix it.

“We reduced our job for us,” she admitted.