Will Egg Prices Rise Again Due to the Current Salmonella Outbreak?
Written by
Laura Beck
Edited by
Molly Sullivan
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If you’ve been to the grocery store lately, you might have noticed egg prices finally starting to come down after months of sticker shock. But a recent salmonella outbreak and subsequent recall could slow that welcome trend (though probably not as dramatically as you might think).
Here’s what’s happening with eggs and what it means for your grocery bill.
The Recall That Has Everyone Talking
In early June, August Egg Company voluntarily pulled over 20 million eggs from shelves across nine states after health officials linked them to a salmonella outbreak. The affected eggs — brown cage-free and organic varieties sold under multiple brand names including Walmart — were distributed between February and May.
So far, 79 people have reported being infected with this particular salmonella strain, according to the CDC. Federal inspectors found that salmonella samples from the eggs closely matched what they were seeing in the human cases, leading to the massive recall.
The company has temporarily stopped selling fresh eggs altogether while they figure out what went wrong and how to prevent it from happening again.
What This Means for Prices
The immediate impact on your grocery bill will likely depend on where you live. The recall affects Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Washington and Wyoming. If you’re shopping in those states, you might see some upward pressure on prices.
But there are some important factors to keep in mind. The United States produces over 8 billion eggs every month, so 20 million recalled eggs which, while not insignificant, represents less than 0.3% of monthly production.
Compare that to earlier this year when avian flu outbreaks knocked out about 1 billion eggs from February production alone. That’s when we saw those major price spikes that had people paying $6-plus for a dozen eggs in some places.
The Bigger Picture on Egg Prices
To understand why this recall might not affect your budget, it helps to look at what’s been happening with egg prices lately. According to recent government data, egg prices actually dropped 2.7% in May and had fallen 12.7% in April.
Those declines came as avian flu outbreaks — the real driver of this year’s egg price crisis — started to ease up. Avian flu has been the 800-pound gorilla affecting egg supplies, forcing farms to destroy entire flocks and temporarily shutting down major production facilities.
However, even with recent price drops, eggs are still about 41% more expensive than they were a year ago.
Why This Recall Is Different
Unlike avian flu, which can wipe out entire farms’ worths of chickens, this salmonella issue is more contained. August Egg Company identified the problem, stopped shipping fresh eggs and diverted its production to pasteurization facilities that kill harmful bacteria.
The company also says it has implemented additional food safety measures to prevent future contamination. This suggests the supply disruption should be temporary rather than the longer-term production losses we saw with bird flu.
Regional Variations Matter
If you live outside the nine affected states, you probably won’t notice much change in egg prices from this particular recall. The impact will be most concentrated in areas where these specific eggs were sold.
Even within affected states, the price impact might vary significantly depending on how much of the local supply came from August Egg Company versus other producers.
What To Expect Going Forward
Most experts expect any price increases from this recall to be relatively minor and short lived, especially compared to the massive spikes we saw earlier this year. The recall removes a relatively small amount of eggs from the market, and other producers can likely ramp up distribution to affected areas fairly quickly.
The bigger question for egg prices going forward is whether we see more avian flu outbreaks, which have been the primary driver of price volatility throughout 2025.
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