Summary
Egg prices are projected to rise by 41% in 2025, according to the USDA, following an already steep increase due to a severe bird flu outbreak that reduced egg-laying hen populations.
The current average price per dozen is nearly $5, with some areas seeing prices as high as $10. Restaurants like Waffle House and Denny’s have added surcharges.
Meanwhile, the USDA mistakenly fired key bird flu response workers, sparking criticism.
Trump stated his administration will take action but has offered no specifics.
We got chickens when facing an egg crisis here in NZ. Lovely little animals. It’s been nice being able to look after and care for these creatures, knowing they are living the good life whilst consuming their eggs. Much more useful than my dumb dog.
“Knowing they are living the good life whilst consuming their eggs” is something I never thought I would hear. Anyway, are they easy to care for? I am assuming you have a big backyard where you can set them free safely.
Food, water, somewhere safe from predators at night, that’s all they really need
While it’s not ideal, chickens can live and enjoy a shockingly small space for the majority of their day. Most coops come with a small run area intended to be where your chickens live most of the time, being let out to free range for an hour or two in the evenings is a common way of raising chickens safely while gone from home (like when at work)
Personally: my area doesn’t have chicken predators I need to worry about (not for adults, anyway) so we raise the young chicks inside in a brooder area we have set up and when they get full-feathered they’re ready to go outside with the other girls. We made a pen for our goats that the chickens ended up taking over so we bolt a new roost bar in there and the chickens do their pecking order stuff, and we’ve got more eggs than we can handle rn, though they’re scattered throughout our yard lol
Yes, but isn’t the upkeep of chickens pricey? People I know that raise them say it is. I don’t have chickens, so I’m not sure. Maybe it’s different in America?
Bag of food that lasts a week is 12 bucks for me, I have ~14 layers at 4-6 eggs a week for each bird. Water is the other ongoing expense but it barely registers on my bill compared to human use