Egg prices are dropping, but Georgia is not in the clear yet

How much do eggs cost right now and why are they so expensive?

According to the USDA’s latest report, as of March 14, wholesale egg prices are on the downslope nationwide. The Department of Agriculture’s weekly egg market overview laid the cooling prices largely at the feet of a lack of new, significant bird flu outbreaks and recent supply improvements.

“Offerings are becoming more available with light demand for mostly moderate supplies and trading,” according to the USDA’s report. “Wholesale prices for national trading of trucklot quantities of graded, loose, white Large shell eggs declined $2.70 to $4.15 per dozen with a sharply lower undertone.”

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

That’s nearly a 34% drop in prices over just a week’s time, and it is only the latest significant weekly price drop since egg costs peaked around late February. While wholesale prices have dropped dramatically, the market is still reeling from the bird flu’s devastation of more than 30.3 million commercial, egg laying birds.

According to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the consumer price index for a dozen large, grade A eggs hit $5.89 last month. That means eggs retailed for nearly twice as much in February 2025 as they did in February 2024. To date, 2025’s wholesalers can barely make 2024’s retail prices — which peaked around $4.15 in December.

Atlanta expert Saloni Firasta Vastani, an Emory University Goizueta Business School associate professor and business strategy, pricing and analytics researcher, spoke with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution to weigh in on it all.

“Typically when wholesale prices drop, it takes a few weeks for it to hit everybody,” said Vastani, who is also the co-author of “Purpose-Driven Pricing.” “Because even mom-and-pop restaurants are not buying at a wholesale level. So it’s going to take some time, and I think there is still some insecurity on if the bird flu is completely contained.

“If that happens again and there’s a breakout — hopefully not — but if it does happen, then it’s going to lead to surging egg prices as well.”

In the egg market, Atlanta businesses are still under the yoke

Neighborhood grocery store Grant Park Market sources eggs from a variety of channels, including local farms, said managing partner Greg Hutchins.

Some of Hutchins’ egg suppliers nearly doubled their prices , he said, but he only added a slight surcharge to the eggs sold at the store instead of sticking to their normal margins. He decided they would eat the cost in hopes the egg crisis would be temporary.

“Unlike a big box store, since we have so many sources we can buy from, I think we’re able to navigate this a little easier,” he said.

As of March 17, Hutchins said he has not seen a drop in prices yet.

“That doesn’t mean it isn’t coming down in price — there’s always a delay — but we have not seen that,” he said.

One of the larger issues Hutchins has faced is keeping the shelves full of eggs. They might put an order in for 10 cases of eggs and receive only three.

“You just have to be nimble and look for other sources.”

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

As a result of emptier grocery shelves, Nathan Nix of 5N Pastures, a local farm in Cleveland, Georgia, said they have seen a rise in local demand for eggs — he estimated about 30% more requests.

He also said it has been more expensive to get replacement hens since there is a limited supply of chicks on the market after flocks were culled from the bird flu.

“You can’t replace the hens that you have had to depopulate,” he said. “You can’t replace those in two weeks or three weeks, or even two months or three months.” Hens generally begin laying eggs when they are between 18 and 22 weeks old depending on the breed, according to the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Nix said they raised their egg prices, but they were already planning to do that before the bird flu brought its crop of problems.

Mitch Lawson, owner of Rise ‘N Shine Farm, a community supported agriculture farm in Calhoun, said they have managed to keep their retail prices pretty stable. Their wholesale prices have increased but are still below the national wholesale average.

“Prices are coming down a bit now nationally, but they may spike around the Easter holidays, then maybe they’ll come back down if more flocks come online and start producing,” he said.

Jack Kim, owner and chef of Danbi Seasonal Kitchen in Chamblee, raised the cost of dishes that feature eggs by about $2 in early February. Despite reports that egg prices are coming back down, he said the cost of eggs from his wholesaler is still “really high.”

The prices have been fluctuating week to week, but it isn’t “going back to where it used to be,” he said.

Whenever it does, he plans to bring the prices back down on his menu.

How much cheaper do eggs need to get for Atlanta shoppers to breathe easy?

From wholesale to retail, 2025’s egg prices remain a major concern nationwide. To understand what it’s going to take for Atlanta shoppers and businesses to breathe easier, let’s delve into the psychology of shopping.

“In pricing psychology, we say that there is this area of noticeable difference,” Vastani explained. “And there are these inelastic bands. If prices typically are within 15% to 20% — maybe a little bit smaller gap for eggs and commodities — but say around 15% or so for original prices, (people) kind of are more accepting of that.”

The magic number? According to the Atlanta expert, it’s around $3.50. The average retail cost of a dozen large, grade A eggs in 2024 was $3.17, dipping to $2.52 in January and climbing to $4.15 in December.

If 2025’s retail egg prices can reach a relatively cool $3.80, Atlanta shoppers and restaurants might start to breathe a little easier.

Here’s why panic buying eggs is a bad idea

The USDA noted some U.S. markets struggled last month with a now familiar consumer habit: panic.

“Grocers have made progress in recent days in maintaining a more consistent stock of shell eggs but some of this is due to many offering little in the way of price incentives which helped to reduce or eliminate altogether much of the panic and opportunity buying seen in some markets in February,” according to the report. “As shell eggs are becoming more available, the sense of urgency to cover supply needs has eased and many marketers are finding prices for spot market offerings are adjusting rapidly downward in their favor.”

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

According to Vastani, it is a challenging impulse that shoppers will want to resist when purchasing eggs this year.

“We are all psychologically driven to that,” she said, explaining the widespread phenomenon of panic buying. “When we see scarcity, we want to kind of ensure (we have enough) and eggs are definitely something we can live without for a couple weeks. We saw this even during COVID; people ran to the grocery store and picked up lots of toilet paper. I had a neighbor who stockpiled her entire garage with toilet paper and paper towel rolls.”

That neighbor ended up needing to sell quite a bit of it back after the pandemic, she explained.

“What we need to start thinking as a community is saying, ‘OK, maybe the egg prices are high, the supply is really low, maybe I should buy half the eggs that I normally buy. Or think about substitutes in my recipes,” suggested Vastani.

An eggless Easter

Easter is quickly approaching, and it is certainly on the egg market’s mind. From painting to hunting, the holiday is full of egg-related traditions that briefly drive increased demand for America’s favorite shelled snack. According to the USDA, despite recently cooling wholesale prices, the egg market might not be ready in time for the big celebration.

“The calendar is nearing the start of the Easter demand season and it remains to be seen if price levels will be able to find a level supportive of holiday demand,” the Department of Agriculture reported.

“Spot market offerings are expected to increase as near-term demand for carton stock is expected to remain limited ahead of the Easter run-up,” the USDA later continued.

So what is an Atlanta grocery shopper to do? Adapt.

“In my family, we have a tradition of boiling and painting eggs,” Vastani said, speaking on her Easter celebration plans. “I think there are other types of eggs available in the store, not chicken eggs, but there are other birds that lay eggs, so that could be an alternative. Plastic eggs and other paper eggs for painting. If you’re not gonna consume it, those may be more sustainable choices as well. I don’t think we should give up on celebrating. I think we just need to kind of adapt.”