US President Donald Trump has talked a lot about eggs.
"When I came in [to office] after one week people were screaming at me about eggs — eggs had nothing to do with me, but they were through the roof and you couldn't get them," President Trump told a gathering of media before a cabinet meeting on Monday.
"Joe Biden especially let the price of eggs get out of control," he told the US Congress earlier this month.
What was a campaign strategy to target cost-of-living concerns among voters has become a policy headache for Mr Trump now he's in the Oval Office.
The cost of eggs has risen 65 per cent in the past year in the US, and is projected to rise again by 41 per cent in 2025.
They're so expensive, people are smuggling them in to the US from Mexico.
In an attempt to reduce prices and address the supply shortage, America is importing hundreds of millions of eggs from other countries including South Korea, Turkiye and Brazil.
Here's what we know about the US egg crisis and what it might mean for Australians who are also grappling with high prices for the household staple.
Why are eggs so expensive in the US?
A major bird flu epidemic has forced farmers to kill millions of chickens across the United States in the past three years.
If one bird falls ill with the virus, the entire flock is culled to reduce the risk of further spread.
Some estimates put the number of chickens, turkeys and other birds killed since 2022 at 170 million.
That has led to a shortage of eggs and has seen prices soar to record highs.
It cost an average of $US5.90 ($9.35) for a dozen grade A large eggs in US cities in February.
[GRAPH]If projections are correct, the cost will rise to $US8.32 in the US this year.
Some small farmer lobby groups have accused bigger suppliers of monopolising the market and reducing supply to inflate profits.
That's been rejected by the American Egg Board.
Regardless, many supermarkets have been unable to source eggs, leaving shoppers struggling to access the food staple.
Even if there are eggs on the shelves, there are often limits on how many cartons people can buy and some people are getting desperate.
US Customs officers have seized more eggs than fentanyl at the border since October, as people try to smuggle them in from Mexico, where they're significantly cheaper.
Officers have claimed 3,768 poultry-related products, compared to 352 fentanyl-related seizures.
Some 100,000 eggs were stolen off the back of a trailer in Pennsylvania last month. Police are yet to find the suspects.
A free egg giveaway in New York left hundreds of people disappointed on Friday, after 100 cartons were snapped up in 10 minutes.
What is the US doing to smash egg prices?
As part of a $US1.87 billion strategy, the US has started importing eggs from countries including South Korea and Turkiye.
"We are talking in the hundreds of millions of eggs for the short-term," US agriculture secretary Brooke Rollins said.
Farmers in Poland and Lithuania have also reported interest from US diplomatic staff hunting more eggs.
"There is a shortage of eggs in many countries," Katarzyna Gawronska, director of Poland's National Chamber of Poultry and Feed Producers, said recently.
"The key question would be what financial conditions would be offered by the Americans."
Speaking to reporters, Ms Rollins said that the imports of eggs would stop once US poultry farmers were able to ramp up supply.
"When our chicken populations are repopulated and we've got a full egg laying industry going again — hopefully in a couple of months — we then shift back to our internal egg layers and moving those eggs out onto the shelf," she said.
Brazil's Animal Protein Association said the Trump administration had changed the rules to allow Brazilian eggs to be used in food products for human consumption, after previously limiting them to use in pet food.
It said egg exports to the US in February had increased 93 per cent on a year earlier.
Ms Rollins said on Monday that the wholesale price of eggs had dropped by 53 per cent in the weeks since its plan was unveiled.
However, the US Food and Drug Administration attributed the falling prices to reduced demand due to high prices. Slowing bird flu outbreaks also led to improved supply.
The US FDA is also considering a petition from the National Chicken Council to allow eggs laid by birds raised for meat to be sold for human consumption.
Broiler chicken producers destroy millions of eggs each year because they aren't refrigerated to food safety standards.
Why are eggs so expensive in Australia?
As America grapples with the cost of golden yolks, Australians are facing similar challenges.
Bird flu outbreaks also affected the national supply in 2024 and prices have risen across the country.
Victoria is battling a bird flu outbreak, reducing the number of egg-laying birds and the number of eggs available as a result.
Four Victorian farms that supply eggs for the Australian market are still listed online as being sites of a H7 strain outbreak.
"The egg industry reports that there has been a significant recovery from last year's outbreaks, however, in some areas there are still gaps in the market," the outbreak notice reads.
"Consumers can expect that some retailers may retain purchasing limits.
"The egg industry, retailers and government are working together to make sure people right across the country continue to have access to eggs."
ABC analysis of ABS data suggests the real cost of eggs is higher than at any point in the past 15 years.
Supermarkets have enforced buying limits on eggs since the middle of 2024 and haven't said when they might be relaxed.
Will Australia import eggs to bring prices down?
There has been no suggestion that Australia will follow the United States in importing eggs from elsewhere to ease the shortage.
Australia is free from the H5 bird flu strain and has some of the strictest biosecurity measures in the world.
The Australian government last year announced a $100 million program to address concerns about the growing avian influenza outbreaks worldwide, including issues in Australia.
A spokesperson for the Department of Agriculture said industry was responding to the present disruption.
"While there are some localised shortages, eggs are generally widely available for consumers," they said.
"Food service companies and retailers can seek approval for the import of eggs and egg products through established import approval protocols if these companies consider this pathway is necessary to secure their requirements for egg products."
ABC/wires
