The price of eggs is projected to fall by as much as 30% after reaching record-high levels over several months.
The USDA says those prices should fall back to typical levels this year, provided the U.S. doesn’t see a rebound in highly pathogenic avian influenza cases in 2023.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics says the price of eggs in January was $4.80 a dozen, 150% higher than in January of last year.
USDA Chief Economist Seth Meyer told the Ag Outlook Forum attendees that wholesale egg prices will drop almost 27% in 2023.
The agency says the high price of eggs is driven by the historic level of avian flu outbreaks that have killed more than 58 million backyard and commercial chickens and turkeys since last February.
The agency says egg production will increase 4% this year to 9.4 billion dozen as the number of egg-laying chickens will also rebound from 2022.
