USA are desperately looking for eggs - Austria cannot help!

USA are desperately looking for eggs - Austria cannot help!

In the USA there is an alarm mood due to a serious shortage of eggs caused by the outbreak of bird flu. The need for eggs is so high that the Americans desperately search for supplies in Europe. A request from Austria was also reported to the US message, but the domestic poultry management Association had to give a sobering answer. "Due to the tense supply situation, we cannot currently deliver any additional eggs to the United States," said Michael Wurzer, Managing Director of the association. The availability of eggs is also critical in Austria because domestic businesses have geared their production on their own market.

The price situation has pointed up: the prices for eggs in the food retail are cheaper than on the spot markets in Europe. As a result, catering businesses that normally shop in wholesale switch to retail offers. "That is why we can no longer export eggs," continued Wurzer. The considerable demand in the United States has also led to several local farmers have already exhausted their capacities. Transport problems also make increased delivery of the United States difficult because eggs have a best -before date of 28 days and have to be stored cool.

Austria secures Easter supply

While the United States is looking for options for filling up its supplies, there is initially no immediate danger to supply at the forthcoming Easter. "Despite sporadic scarcity, we will supply the population with sufficient fresh eggs," emphasized Wurzer. If there are bottlenecks in some varieties, the association appeals to consumers to use Austrian eggs from other forms of husbandry. Josef Moosbrugger, President of the LKÖ, supports this statement and emphasizes the importance of domestic quality.

The challenges of the current market are also shown in the growing number of discount campaign markets in Austria. According to a current survey by the advisory company Location + Markt, the number of action markets from 13 in 2009 has increased to 376. This makes it clear that the discount culture in the food trade continues to increase.