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By Shane Croucher
Senior Editor
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Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins defended the Trump Administration's handling of egg prices, pointing to recent reductions—but warned they would "inch back up" during the Easter season.
"A good piece of news we just got in the last day or two is that the average cost of a dozen eggs has now gone down $1.85 since we announced our plan about a week and a half ago on February 26," Rollins told reporters Tuesday morning.
"So listen, we're going into Easter season. This is always the highest price for eggs. We expect it to perhaps inch back up, but a good piece of news since we released our plan about a week and a half ago."
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Why it Matters
The price of eggs has become a political bellwether amid high inflation.
President Donald Trump and his allies used the rising price of consumer products such as eggs to criticize former President Joe Biden's handling of the economy, capitalizing on voter upset at their financial situation.
There will come a time when the impact of rising prices is priced into public opinion of Trump, so he will need to get on top of any of these issues as they crop up.
That may be a task made harder if economists' fears of a looming North American recession caused by the emerging trade war come true.
Democrats have sought to highlight the recent rise in egg prices to chip away at Trump's support.
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What to Know
U.S. egg prices hit a record average of $4.95 per dozen in January, surpassing a previous record set in January 2023, according to federal data.
In some parts of the country, prices are much higher. A Safeway supermarket in San Francisco was selling a dozen eggs for $10.99 last week.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects egg prices to rise 41 percent this year over last year's average of $3.17 per dozen.
Some restaurants are already adding temporary surcharges when customers order eggs. Denny's said its surcharge varies by region and even by restaurant, while Waffle House has added a 50-cent surcharge per egg at all its restaurants.
Egg production has been hit hard by avian flu outbreaks.
The industry and most experts agree that the ongoing bird flu outbreak is the main reason egg prices are setting records, although some question whether egg producers are inflating prices to boost profits.
What People Are Saying
Trump said in his address to Congress: "Joe Biden especially let the price of eggs get out of control—the egg prices out of control. We're working hard to get it back down."
Greg Price, White House rapid response manager, posted on X: "So much for the Democrat talking point that President Trump was personally responsible for the increase in egg prices. Not even two weeks after USDA announced an effort to combat avian flu, egg prices are officially lower than before President Trump took office."
Rep. Josh Riley (D-NY) said: "Is it any wonder, after 40 years of shipping jobs overseas just to make Wall Street rich, after three years of egg prices skyrocketing and nobody around this place doing a goddamn thing about it, that people are really, really frustrated and believe that our democracy does not work for them? Can you blame them?"
This article includes reporting by The Associated Press.
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