Eggflation is a world egg crisis where the price of eggs skyrocketed due to the reduced supply of eggs in several countries including the United States (US), Canada, Britain, Japan and even Malaysia.
It starts at the end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023 where the price of eggs soared especially in the US and Canada.
The outbreak of bird flu or avian influenza that attacked the country since the beginning of 2022 is one of the worst outbreaks since 2015.
Overall food inflation due to increased labor and logistics costs has also pushed up egg prices coupled with reduced egg supply.
In the US, the price of eggs increased by 59% in December 2022, the price for 12 eggs reached $4.25 which is an increase of $1.78 compared to the previous year.
In Britain, an increase in egg prices of almost 6% was recorded in December 2022.
The price of an egg that is normally ¥200 has risen to ¥335 in Japan.
Not to be outdone in Malaysia, egg supply has shrunk by 20% to 25% from November to December 2022.
The desperate action of farmers to sell laying hens to meet the demand for fresh chickens has reduced the supply of eggs and increased the price of eggs in the market.
However, temporary measures have been taken by importing egg supplies from abroad to meet consumer demand for egg supplies.
There are several other factors that are also the cause of the increase in egg prices in most countries, namely:
Increased maintenance costs: the cost of chicken feed, power and logistics cause price increases.
Bird flu epidemic: 90% to 100% of the effects of avian influenza transmission that infect chickens result in death, at the same time it will affect the supply and price of eggs in the market.
Covid-19: the effects of the covid 19 pandemic are also felt by chicken farmers and have affected their business, this will also affect the supply of eggs in the market to recover after the phase.
Changes in consumer attitudes: the reduced purchasing power of consumers has caused them to start turning to cheaper sources of protein such as eggs, which has resulted in an increase in the demand for egg supply as well as an increase in the price of eggs.
The problem of chicken supply: the uncertain supply of chickens to farmers due to increased costs and the risk of bird flu outbreaks causes the amount of egg supply to be disrupted and ultimately affects the price of eggs in the market.
Eggflation is indeed having a negative impact on consumers and farmers around the world.
The function of eggs as a cheap source of protein and one of the most useful ingredients for food sources is indeed affected when there is an increase in the price of eggs.
Therefore, the factors that lead to eggflation must be dealt with immediately without affecting any of the parties involved if it happens again in the future.
