In California, the average price for a dozen large eggs was $8.97, according to the US Department of Agriculture. The average prices for extra large and jumbo were $8.99. Some grocery stores, including Trader Joe’s and even Costco, have limited how many eggs shoppers can buy.

The Department of Agriculture warned egg prices may increase more than 20% this year, after December saw a year-over-year increase of 36.8%.

You're probably paying record-high prices for eggs -- if there are any available for purchase. We'll eggsplain why.

OMAHA, Neb. -- OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Bird flu is forcing farmers to slaughter millions of chickens a month, pushing U.S. egg prices to more than double their cost in the summer of 2023. And it appears there may be no relief in sight, given the surge in demand as Easter approaches.

“We’re just coming out of the highest demand season of the year—the winter holidays—when eggs sales increase significantly due to holiday baking and entertaining,” she says. These two forces combined—tight supply and high demand—are directly causing the spike in wholesale prices consumers are seeing.

Bird flu is forcing farmers to slaughter millions of chickens a month, pushing U.S. egg prices to more than double their cost in the summer of 2023. And it appears there may be no relief in sight, given the surge in demand as Easter approaches.

A carton of eggs today costs more than $4 on average, up from about $2.50 a year ago. Prices aren’t the only thing making headlines — the virus has recently taken a human life, too. After nearly three years of warnings from leading public health and animal agriculture experts that bird flu was becoming a threat to human beings,

Americans can expect to pay more for eggs in 2025, as Avian flu continues to hurt commercial and backyard livestock nationwide. According to the US Department of Agriculture, egg prices are predicted to increase by 20.