The United States has started importing Turkish and South Korean eggs to cope with a supply shortage brought on by large-scale avian flu outbreaks, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins affirmed on Friday. It is aimed at stabilizing the price, which has increased on account of at least 30 million birds’ culling across the country.
Addressing journalists in Washington, Rollins said the US is buying “hundreds of millions of eggs” in the near term and is also negotiating with other countries to temporarily increase imports.
Prices for eggs have also emerged as a political hotbutton issue, with past President Donald Trump often making reference to it during the campaign trail as one part of his larger attack on inflation during the tenure of President Joe Biden. Upon assuming office in January, Trump instructed Rollins to raise supplies of eggs and reduce prices.
Within recent weeks, the producers of poultry in several countries have expressed US interest in buying eggs. The Polish and Lithuanian associations of poultry acknowledged that they had been approached by US officials in search of potential sources. Katarzyna Gawronska, Poland’s National Chamber of Poultry and Feed Producers director, confirmed the increased demand and indicated that economic conditions would be important in the negotiations.
Rollins guaranteed that imports are short-term, with hopes of going back to local supply when US chicken farms return to normal. “Once our chicken flocks are rebuilt and egg production is back up to capacity, we will move away from imports,” she stated, hoping the industry stabilizes in the next few months.
The egg shortage reflects the wider effect of avian flu on international food supply chains, causing governments to look at emergency measures to make basic goods affordable.
