Egg price outlook ‘impossible’
The outlook for prices of U.S. eggs and egg products in light of the current outbreak of avian influenza in the United States is nothing short of impossible, said egg expert Richard Broad, vice-president of Bender-Goodman Co., Inc., at the Sosland Publishing Purchasing Seminar.
“The supply crisis will pass,” he said, “but the ramifications from this outbreak may last for years.” He mentioned egg replacers as a stopgap solution for food producers but said consumers will probably be able to tell the difference in taste and texture and may resist buying the new formulations. He noted significant obstacles to importing eggs from other countries. He said costs for eggs and egg products will increase “but how much isn’t known.” And he said some egg and egg processors will not be able to make the necessary changes to cope with what he called a staggering problem facing their industry.
“There is no playbook” on how to dispose of the millions of chicken and turkey carcasses, he added, or easy ways to repopulate commercial poultry operations with fresh birds, a process that can take months, if not years, to accomplish.
