Egg shortage before Easter: How bird flu threatens supplies!

Egg shortage before Easter: How bird flu threatens supplies!

Given the upcoming holidays, there is uncertainty about egg supplies in Austria, especially for dyeing eggs. How crown reported, the range of eggs in supermarkets could be thinner in some cases. This situation is the result of an outbreak of bird flu that occurred last fall. Nevertheless, this outbreak has not triggered a profound crisis.

The hens in Austria are largely kept on farms, which is very different from the situation in large agricultural corporations in the USA. Rosemarie Ferstl, Vice President of the Upper Austrian Chamber of Agriculture, emphasizes that there are a total of 2,492 laying hen farms in Austria. These companies are affected by isolated outbreaks, but these do not lead to dramatic supply bottlenecks.

Effects of bird flu

The chairman of the Upper Austrian poultry industry, Gerold Sterrer, points out that a gradual shortage of eggs is to be expected. Egg consumption over the last five years has increased, and per capita consumption is now 248 pieces per year. The high construction costs, rising interest rates and the uncertain economic situation, which are affecting the laying hen population in Upper Austria, are considered worrying.

The economic conditions have meant that prices have not yet been adjusted to reflect the increased production costs. The target for farms is two cents more per egg. The most common form of farming in Austria in 2024 is barn farming with 56%, followed by free-range farming (31%) and organic free-range farming (13%).

Empty shelves and alternative shopping sources

The effects of bird flu are also clearly noticeable in supermarkets. Since the turn of the year we have regularly seen empty egg shelves, which leads to a tense supply situation. This is a direct result of the culling of 200,000 laying hens and 30,000 pullets in Austria in late autumn due to bird flu. The situation is similar across Europe: 1.4 million laying hens had to be culled in Poland, 400,000 in Slovakia and around 790,000 in Italy, which led to an estimated shortfall of 3 to 4% of egg production in the main season.

Due to the situation in the poultry market, the affected countries have hardly any goods available for foreign trade, which further limits the supply of eggs in the EU. The low supply of imported goods has led to catering establishments increasingly relying on local eggs. In addition, dyeing eggs at Easter requires careful importing, which further limits the availability of fresh eggs. Many consumers therefore use alternative purchasing sources, such as purchasing directly from egg producers.

Prices for eggs develop differently in different countries. Loud LKO In Poland, Hungary and Slovakia, egg prices rose by up to 40% from October to December, while in Germany, France and the Netherlands there was an increase of 10 to 15%. Prices remained relatively stable in Italy and Austria. These developments in the egg price situation not only affect Europe, but also markets outside of it, such as in the USA, where 3.5% of the laying hen population fell victim to the effects of bird flu in December, leading to record egg prices.