Yep.
Import cheap labor that does not need benefits or vacation.

OP user name checks out

Maybe the bologna smuggling cartel can include some eggs.

Per the article, Mexican mayo is supposed better as well... (insert juvenile joke here).

https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/bologna-seized-at-texas-mexico-border/

Wholesale prices are starting to fall, but someone wants the FTC to look at stuff.
[url=https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/high-egg-prices-should-be-investigated-us-farm-group-says-2023-01-20/][/url]

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High egg prices should be investigated, U.S. farm group says
Cal-Maine Foods (CALM.O), which controls 20% of the retail egg market, reported quarterly sales up 110% and gross profits up more than 600% over the same quarter in the prior fiscal year, according to a late December filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The company pointed to decreased egg supply nationwide due to avian flu driving up prices as a reason for its record sales. The company has had no positive avian flu tests on any of its farms.

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#defundfoodpolice

What was the normal price of a dozen eggs before all of this?

YouBet said:

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What was the normal price of a dozen eggs before all of this?

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It depends on the grade and the size (damn government interference for standardizing things), but about $1-2/dozen. If you want eggs from free range chickens with high self-esteem, expect to pay more.

YouBet said:

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What was the normal price of a dozen eggs before all of this?

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Old normal or new normal? Remember, we have all sorts of new definitions of normal.

Looks like spike began 1 year ago.

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/APU0000708111

Thanks for the price checks on aisle 5. Finally reading up on this and looks like this avian flu is the worst outbreak in US history with 6% of our hens off the egg laying grid.

A little scary that scientists are saying they don't understand why it has persisted this long and not already run it's course. Probably engineered by china again.

If only the unvaccinated had gotten the vaccine, hens would not be dying.

MuchosPollos said:

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duffelpud said:

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We're laying our own from now on.

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I sold 10 dozen this weekend at my front gate. the girls are going have to pay for their own food from now on.

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So, everyone missed the massive "username checks out" here?

We got a coop and a half dozen hens and when you factor in the startup costs and the feed and whatnot, if egg prices remain this high, we might break even in 25 years

YouBet said:

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What was the normal price of a dozen eggs before all of this?

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I was afraid to ask that too and come off like G.H. Bush.

Wife does the grocery shopping.

Biden

Chicken is one thing, but what are the risks with the eggs? Why aren't Texas grocery chains buying up eggs from Mexico and selling them here in our stores?

Buck Turgidson said:

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Chicken is one thing, but what are the risks with the eggs? Why aren't Texas grocery chains buying up eggs from Mexico and selling them here in our stores?

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The key is properly cleaned. Avian flu is a bugger, and the odds of Juan having the wherewithal to do that, plus the distrust of Mexican inspection are enough to cut it off. As I said earlier, it wasn't always this way. Mexico currently imports lots U.S. eggs (avian flu hammered them) and cutoff Iowa and Indiana poultry products because of their outbreak.

Why can't we import Mexican eggs? Seems like a win-win?

I'm guessing you don't understand bio security in the poultry industry.

Or commons issues presented by highly infectious diseases.

As a matter of practice, what do poultry producers here do that Mexican producers may not do? Antibiotics? Selective breeding? General plant hygiene? Are there pathogens we are trying to isolate from entering the US?I'm genuinely curious to understand better.

Funky Winkerbean said:

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As a matter of practice, what do poultry producers here do that Mexican producers may not do? Antibiotics? Selective breeding? General plant hygiene? Are there pathogens we are trying to isolate from entering the US?I'm genuinely curious to understand better.

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big issue is tracking contamination from one flock to another. So that means biosecurity levels before you enter and when you exit a facility. For example the egg operation on Hwy 21 all vehicles drive thru a disinfected bath as you come in and leave the facility.

Big issue is people that raise yard birds that then bring disease from there to contained chicken houses. That's supposed to be forbidden in the US.

But you can bring in contamination in poultry from every source, litter, eggs, meat and you can bring it on cloths, shoes, vehicles, and wildlife (migrating birds)

I don't think Mexico goes thru the biosecurity the US does

One bad thing about avian flu is its ability to "fly" from one farm to another via wild birds. Can those fly across the border? Sure, but we do what we can. A major issue is with small producers that do not necessarily follow protocols, or use commercially available vaccines. I know with one of my clients, my vehicle is sprayed down (tires and undercarriage, especially), and I can't enter actual houses. The US even requires commercial producers to do an extra "wash". Here's some USDA info, and info on the most recent Mexican outbreak. Hope this helps.

https://ask.usda.gov/s/article/Should-eggs-be-washed-before-they-are-used

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/mexico-detects-h5n1-bird-flu-farm-near-us-border-2022-10-31/

B-1 83 said:

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aTmAg said:

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How is it good government to keep the free market from working? We need eggs so we should want more eggs. Government is keeping us from getting more eggs. This is bad government, not good government.

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Government is keeping diseases from crossing our border and causing more damage to poultry flocks. Do you trust Mexico to send clean, disease-free products across our borders that are properly quarantined, inspected, or processed? Get it?

Good government.

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So how did the diseases get here then? And how did they get so bad they theoretically killed enough birds to cause massive price increases in eggs?

You can't tell me that eggs from Mexico are any worse than domestic, or any of the backyard chicken eggs a whole hell of a lot of people eat and sell on the regular here.

I am telling you, and as BQ 90 (an actual poultry guy) said, we know how to isolate facilities, and the bio security surrounding them is better. It came to the US via wild birds, I understand. We may not be able to stop that, but I guarantee the we do a better job than Mexico. I never claimed anything about egg prices, just the danger of disease transmission from Mexican poultry products. Maybe this will help:

https://www.science.org/content/article/record-avian-flu-outbreak-threatening-north-america-s-birds-virus-here-stay

schmellba99 said:

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B-1 83 said:

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aTmAg said:

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How is it good government to keep the free market from working? We need eggs so we should want more eggs. Government is keeping us from getting more eggs. This is bad government, not good government.

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Government is keeping diseases from crossing our border and causing more damage to poultry flocks. Do you trust Mexico to send clean, disease-free products across our borders that are properly quarantined, inspected, or processed? Get it?

Good government.

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So how did the diseases get here then? And how did they get so bad they theoretically killed enough birds to cause massive price increases in eggs?

You can't tell me that eggs from Mexico are any worse than domestic, or any of the backyard chicken eggs a whole hell of a lot of people eat and sell on the regular here.

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it's not that eggs are bad or harmful to humans, it's they can transmit diseases across the border. Or even the trucks can transport the diseases on tires or any contamination on the vehicle or even the driver, shoes and cloths can transmit the virus from one operation to another.

Biggest issue with avian flu is wildlife or migrating birds. In many cases if a flock or grower has infected birds, they wipe out all the birds in that operation in attempt to stop the spread.

B-1 83 said:

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I am telling you, and as BQ 90 (an actual poultry guy) said, we know how to isolate facilities, and the bio security surrounding them is better. It came to the US via wild birds, I understand. We may not be able to stop that, but I guarantee the we do a better job than Mexico. I never claimed anything about egg prices, just the danger of disease transmission from Mexican poultry products. Maybe this will help:

https://www.science.org/content/article/record-avian-flu-outbreak-threatening-north-america-s-birds-virus-here-stay

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good point, I'm not poultry producer I just play one at work (or I used to in my old job in the field)

The goal is containment.

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....and it doesn't put 3rd parties in danger.

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Which is why the govt limits what comes in.
So ends the lesson.

one safe place said:

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I'm good with skipping eggs until prices improve.

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Not me, I'll sacrifice something else to get my eggs.

Faustus said:

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YouBet said:

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What was the normal price of a dozen eggs before all of this?

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I was afraid to ask that too and come off like G.H. Bush.

Wife does the grocery shopping.

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Mine does as well. So I asked her and she doesn't know the cost either. Seems to be a breakdown in our process.

She better know the prices for assembling my sandwiches!

Avian flu has not made the jump into humans and may never be able to, but neither was the corona virus just a few years ago.

Our USDA inspectors and the APHIS system are doing their best to contain a myriad of contagious diseases to help ensure we all have a safe, healthy and adequate supply of food. When things such as avian flu infect large numbers of birds, it affects the safety and supply. Then people get their chonies is a wad and do whatever they think they need to do to "fix" the problem. This is NOT the correct answer!

Avian flu is one that is of smaller consequence than others currently being monitored by USDA and APHIS.

Want to see something scarier? Look at the persistence and scope of the TB infections of dairy and feedlot cattle in the panhandle. Thousands if not tens of thousands of animals taken out of the population a year - for the last who knows how many years. Think that affects your price of beef? I will guarantee you it does.

Want to see something that could be scarier - look at CWD and know that it IS transferable to humans. No known cases yet, but has been shown to be possible.

https://texags.com/forums/34/topics/3355913

You may think egg prices are high now, just wait until someone brings in more contamination and causes a few more million birds to be destroyed.

The system is not perfect, it will not solve all of the problems presented to it, but I personally know several very good people at APHIS that spend A LOT of time away from their families to try to make the food you get is as safe and healthy as possible.

If we don't have good regulations, we may end up with an avian flu problem leading to expensive eggs and chicken

Didn't someone say eggs are still like 2.50 a dozen in California

TxTarpon said:

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Quote:

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....and it doesn't put 3rd parties in danger.

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Which is why the govt limits what comes in.
So ends the lesson.

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What 3rd party is in danger when somebody in Mexico buys eggs, drives them over the border, and sells them for me to eat?