Rent-a-chicken: A solution to high egg prices and shortages
Some people are turning to creative ways to circumvent the high cost of eggs by renting their own chickens.
Egg prices continued to climb in February, despite some easing of inflation, according to the latest consumer price index released on Wednesday.
Though grocery price gains have slowed after a pandemic-related surge, they’ve accelerated recently, in part because of drought, hurricanes and a two-year bird flu outbreak that has caused egg prices to rise. Egg costs overall jumped another 10.4% last month after a 15.2% rise in January, when seasonally adjusted, according to the latest consumer price index.
The average U.S. city price of a dozen large grade A eggs, not seasonally adjusted, in February was $5.90, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s up from $4.95 in January and $4.14 in December.
Grocery prices remain concern of consumers
Grocery prices continue to be consumers’ top concern when it comes to the economy, a new survey confirms.
Nearly 90% of consumers surveyed by Morning Consult recently said they were “very concerned” (61%) or “somewhat concerned” (29%) about grocery and food prices.
“Despite the annual inflation rate for groceries being relatively low (1.8%) compared to its recent high in 2022 (13.5%), grocery prices continue to be the top concern. That is followed by inflation, housing costs, gas costs and ‘how the amount of money I personally have covers my monthly expenses.’” according to the survey completed in late February.
However, 61% of respondents said they would prefer that prices of goods and services go down instead of their income increasing (39%). That share has decreased slightly since 2023, Morning Consult said, but still suggests “that consumers want price declines today as much as they did over a year ago.”
Overall food prices have had some declines
While the headlines have been about exponential egg prices, overall food prices have been steady, with some declines shown in some categories such as fruits, vegetables and bakery products in January, said Andy Harig, vice president of tax, trade, sustainability and policy development for FMI – The Food Industry Association, during a recent briefing on food prices.
“In general, inflation has remained relatively flat overall, but we’ve seen that it’s propped up to the sense that it’s still advancing by a few outliers, like eggs, sugar, sweets and areas like beef, that continue to be troublesome and see above average inflation rates,” Harig said.
FMI’s March shopper snapshot showed that shoppers showed a mix of optimism and anxiety and worry.
Fifty-six percent of shoppers in January surveyed said they had positive expectations for 2025 overall. That number fell to 45% in March.
Top concerns among shoppers were the effect of tariffs on grocery prices and bird flu impacting egg prices and availability, Harig said.
Consumers are doing their best to adapt to the egg shortages, he said.
“Consumers are nimble and they’re bringing this flexibility to this egg situation. They’re using all the tools in their toolbox,” he said. “They may be buying different brands. They may be buying different types of eggs; so maybe going from cage free to a more conventional style of raising. They are shopping in different stores. They are substituting eggs with other products or in some cases, buying less and finding something else to feed their family.”
Some consumers have also looked into renting egg-laying hens and raising their own chickens, as previously reported by USA TODAY.
Groceries taking a bigger chunk out of monthly spending
The rise in grocery prices appears to be partially reflected in household spending, according to the latest Bank of America Institute Consumer Checkpoint study using the bank’s internal credit card data.
Households with lower incomes spent around 1% more on groceries in January, with smaller rises for middle- and higher-income households. In February, lower-income households saw a decline while middle-and higher-income households spent more.
“It may be that some of the recent decline in grocery spending at the lower end of the spectrum may be due to a spreading out or trading down effect, as some lower-income households head to general merchandise or discount stores to save money,” the report said.
If food prices continue to rise, consumers may shop for groceries more often, but spend less.
“This approach of ‘more but smaller’ shops may allow consumers to focus on buying things they feel represent good value at particular stores. And a natural counterpart is households also shopping increasingly at ‘value’ grocery stores,’ “the report said.
Grocery store spending per household at value stores rose 1.2% year over year and dropped 1.4% during that same time at premium grocers, the report said.
Paul Davidson contributed to this report. Betty Lin-Fisher is a consumer reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at blinfisher@USATODAY.com or follow her on X, Facebook or Instagram @blinfisher and @blinfisher.bsky.social on Bluesky. Sign up for our free The Daily Money newsletter, which will include consumer news on Fridays, here.
