The Justice Department is investigating surging egg prices, with egg producers likely to be examined, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, as the Trump administration grapples with rising prices caused by a devastating bird flu outbreak.
Trump is attempting to curb rising egg prices. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
The probe into the root of rising egg costs will also include an investigation of whether top egg producers have conspired to hold back their supplies or increase prices, according to the Journal, which cited unnamed sources.
The Journal noted the investigation is still in early stages and may not lead to formal actions against any of the examined companies, and it’s not clear if the investigation is criminal or civil.
Egg price hikes have primarily been attributed to a bird flu outbreak in the U.S. that has led to 166 million birds being killed in an effort to contain the disease among livestock since 2022, reducing the hen population by tens of millions.
It is unclear which specific egg producers are being looked at by the DOJ, though some of the largest egg producers in the U.S. include companies like Cal-Maine Foods, Rose Acre Farms and Hillandale Farms, the first of which owns about 44 million egg-laying hens and is the largest U.S. shell egg producer.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to Forbes’ request for comment.
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$4.95. That is the average price of a dozen large, Grade A eggs in the U.S. as of January, marking an all-time high and a nearly $3 increase from Sept. 2023, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Average egg prices increased about $2.80 during former President Joe Biden’s final year in office, a jump largely attributed to bird flu. Biden’s administration accused corporations across several sectors, including grocers, of price-gouging, and often used antitrust enforcers to address what he believed was a lack of competition sending prices higher. Last year, Judge Adrienne Nelson blocked a merger between Albertsons and Kroger, siding with a challenge from Biden’s Federal Trade Commission, which argued Kroger would become too dominant under the deal that would have added some 2,000 locations to the retail company.
The bird flu surge impacting the U.S. chicken population began in 2022 and will likely continue having an adverse effect into 2025, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which said egg prices will “continue to experience volatile month-to-month changes” this year and are expected to rise a total of 20.3%. President Donald Trump’s Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced last month a $1 billion initiative to “make eggs affordable again.” Under the program, $500 million will be allocated to poultry producers’ biosecurity measures, aiming to help them fight the bird flu impacting their flocks. $400 million will go toward financial relief for farmers dealing with chicken shortages while $100 million will be invested in the use of vaccines and therapeutics for egg-laying hens.
Egg Shortage: Trump Administration Announces $1 Billion Plan To Lower Egg Prices (Forbes)