People love eggs. They’re a grocery staple. But in the first few months of 2025, the average price of eggs in the United States reached $6 per dozen, double what they cost at the same point last year. The main reason behind the increase is the spread of the avian flu, which has led to the killing of about 170 million birds in the United States. Fewer hens mean fewer eggs on the market, driving prices up. And now there’s a new fear: For the first time ever, bird flu’s been found in cows.
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00:00This graph shows the consumer price of eggs since 1980.
00:05You can see the highest peak is, well, now, in 2025.
00:10But look at these two other spikes here and here.
00:14It's the same problem pecking away at your wallet.
00:17A bird flu outbreak.
00:19So, just like in 2015, the price should go back down, right?
00:24Well, it's not that simple.
00:26The spread of the current bird flu virus has experts and farmers on especially high alert.
00:32The industry has culled upwards of 170 million, which really is unprecedented.
00:40And politicians blaming each other isn't solving the problem.
00:44The Biden administration and the Department of Agriculture directed the mass killing of more than 100 million chickens.
00:50So, President Trump, what's your plan to stop the spread of bird flu?
00:54If the outbreak isn't contained soon, egg prices could crack the record high reached in February 2025 of $6 a dozen.
01:03Double the price from one year earlier.
01:06Of course, that's just an average.
01:08You've probably seen shelves filled with eight or even $10 cartons.
01:13And the bird flu is wreaking havoc on more than just chickens.
01:19Put your camera down.
01:22So, why is this bird flu outbreak so bad?
01:27And how long can we expect eggs to be this expensive?
01:33The H5N1 avian flu usually starts in wild migratory birds.
01:39If other birds come into contact with infected birds or contaminated surfaces, they catch it too.
01:45The virus then copies itself rapidly, attacking multiple organs.
01:51And at large poultry farms, chickens are kept in such close proximity that the virus can spread quickly between them.
02:00The flu is so severe in chickens that entire flocks can die within 48 hours of infection.
02:07Federal policy requires all the birds in a flock be killed if just one test positive for avian flu.
02:14So far, farmers have had to kill more than 170 million birds.
02:20In 2015, that number was in the 50 million range.
02:25Culling hens will raise egg and chicken prices in the short term.
02:29But it stops the blue in its tracks.
02:32Then, farmers can rebuild their flocks and get egg production going again.
02:37During the outbreak 10 years ago, poultry producers did just that.
02:41And it worked.
02:43So why isn't it working now?
02:46Well, for the first time ever, the avian flu has been found in cows.
02:52Scientists believe infected cows can pass the virus to healthy poultry flocks.
02:59And the risk is higher when dairy farms and poultry farms are near each other, like they are here.
03:06That's made it a lot harder to contain the spread.
03:09Because the more movement that you have of the virus and the more replication of the virus,
03:14the more chances the virus has to mutate and adapt to a new host.
03:19A host like us.
03:22Because cows and humans have a few things in common.
03:26They've had very high levels of virus, like in their udders.
03:29And what we know is that the types of receptors that they have in their udders
03:33are receptors that are found both in human eyes,
03:36human upper respiratory tract and human lower respiratory tract.
03:40And depending on how it mutates, there's different concerns that come up
03:44both around how communicable it is between people and then how deadly it is,
03:48how likely it could be to cause pneumonias and kill people.
03:52Out of 70 human cases reported so far in the United States,
03:56there has been one death, a resident of Louisiana.
04:00Almost 60% of these cases came from exposure to cattle.
04:05The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the current public health risk for humans is low.
04:11But Crystal Heath, a veterinarian, is skeptical of this messaging.
04:16We followed Crystal, who has been photographing dairy and poultry farms in California
04:21to document and expose the severity of the outbreak.
04:26Today we're driving by some of the dairies and poultry facilities that I've been by before.
04:32Last time I was there, I filmed boarded fetuses on the ground,
04:38cows with a lot of nasal discharge, and cows breathing rapidly.
04:43I don't know for sure if they had avian influenza,
04:47but those are all signs of avian influenza.
04:56We can't see the implications of the outbreak in poultry flocks because they're hidden away.
05:03But with avian influenza in dairy cows, they're out in the open.
05:10It's easy to drive by any facility and see for yourself what's happening.
05:14And unfortunately, there's just not a lot of footage in the media showing sick cows.
05:21In about two and a half miles, take exit 85 toward Page Avenue.
05:35So we're just going to see.
05:38Sometimes I don't see any signs of illness until I actually photograph them.
05:44Put your camera down.
05:51I'm going to drive to the next area here.
06:06See how many birds there are.
06:10So you'll see the birds eating the grass.
06:15See how many birds there are.
06:19So you'll see the birds eating the feed, drinking out of the water troughs,
06:22and pooping in the water troughs.
06:24So they could potentially spread this disease to the cows.
06:29And you can hear all of the birds in the background.
06:35And also hear the cannon that is a loud boom trying to deter the birds.
06:43The birds seem unimpressed by the cannon.
06:47But you could see how avian influenza could spread from the birds to dairies like this.
06:59Business Insider cannot confirm that all of these dairy farms have had avian flu outbreaks.
07:05But as of April 2nd, 996 dairy herds in the U.S. had contracted bird flu.
07:11Over 75% of them were in California.
07:16You have thousands of highly stressed animals housed in these facilities in close contact with human beings.
07:23This is the perfect environment for viruses to mutate and potentially jump to humans.
07:33It's hard even under the best circumstances.
07:36A lot of these facilities are implementing all of the biosecurity protocols available to them.
07:42And they are still having outbreaks.
07:47Experts say there's no reason as of yet to believe you can get bird flu from drinking pasteurized milk or eating beef.
07:54We have just not seen anyone get sick by that route.
08:00But egg prices are at record highs.
08:03Cows are getting sick.
08:05And humans could be at risk.
08:07What can we do?
08:09There is one other option.
08:11Vaccination.
08:13But producers are worried this would ruin their ability to trade internationally.
08:18Trade partners refuse to buy vaccinated poultry because, in theory, those birds might not exhibit symptoms
08:25but could still carry and spread the disease.
08:29The Congressional Chicken Caucus says that losing access to the export market
08:33could mean an annual economic loss of $10 billion or more.
08:38And yet, the avian flu has already spread to every continent but Australia.
08:43I hope they realize that actually wild bird migration patterns, wild bird flocks,
08:48even without vaccination, the chance is still there that you're going to import
08:52or there will be spillover in some manner.
08:54If the detection is a problem, then you need to have better protocols in place
08:57for surveillance of imported poultry in general.
09:01Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Secretary of Health and Human Services for the Trump administration,
09:07who's known for stating misinformation about vaccines, claimed vaccination would turn those birds into mutant factories.
09:16He suggested letting the virus run its course without intervention.
09:21You know what else causes mutant factories is unregulated spread because you have ongoing mutations,
09:26you have ongoing spillovers.
09:28People have thought about this for vaccinating humans at times too, right?
09:32There is, of course, a risk because viruses will then continue to replicate, continue to mutate.
09:36But that has never been an argument to not vaccinate people or anybody.
09:41We still have a goal that is a reasonable goal, which is to reduce morbidity, reduce mortality.
09:47RFK Jr.'s comments came as the USDA announced an additional investment of $1 billion to combat bird flu,
09:55with $100 million dedicated exclusively to vaccine research.
10:00The Biden administration spent just over $2 billion on managing the outbreak with limited success.
10:07But these billions aren't just about finding a solution.
10:11These companies that do this and have to exterminate their birds due to avian influenza
10:16get millions of dollars in taxpayer-subsidized bailouts.
10:23The recent USDA investment allocates 40% of the funds to compensate producers for their losses.
10:30Critics think this could disincentivize poultry producers from changing their farming practices.
10:37It's important for people to remember that when you have a lot of money on the line,
10:41the result often will be second until there's no choice, until a lot of people get very sick quickly
10:47and now you really have to do something about it.
10:50Several poultry farmers declined to speak with Business Insider for this story,
10:55with many citing concerns of retaliation and losing contracts with clients.
11:00The Department of Justice recently launched an investigation into price gouging by large egg producers,
11:06including withholding supply to keep prices high.
11:11All the while, restaurants and consumers are struggling to manage.
11:17Tribeca Park Cafe in New York City had to raise the price of the classic bacon, egg and cheese by 75 cents.
11:25The owner even put up Business Insider articles about the rising price of eggs
11:30to try to explain this decision to customers.
11:33Still, it didn't go well.
11:41Across the country, restaurants like Waffle House have done the same thing.
11:47Bakeries like Norma's Sweets in New Orleans are also feeling the heat.
11:52Oh, it's hurting, man. Normally we get them for $35, $40 a case, and now we're paying like $100, $1800, $120.
11:59It's horrible, you know, it's tough.
12:02Americans are seeking out deals on cheap eggs whenever they can.
12:07I absolutely love Costco, so waiting in line is no problem.
12:10And we got here at 9 a.m. right when they opened, and there was already a line like this.
12:16In 2015, it took about six months for egg prices to return to pre-outbreak levels.
12:22We're in the third year of this recent outbreak in the U.S.,
12:26and the only relief the egg market has seen is a drop in wholesale egg prices.
12:31But it's unclear if and when consumers will see lower prices at the grocery store.
12:37In fact, in March, the USDA predicted prices would rise 57.6% in 2025.
12:44And despite the extra government funding to combat bird flu,
12:48widespread layoffs of public health workers could make fighting the disease harder.
12:54Harry is more optimistic about egg prices.
12:57Let me kind of go through a really brief little cycle with you.
13:00The bird flu causes this supply shock, which causes prices to double,
13:06then send market signals to existing egg producers to expand their production,
13:13to take advantage of the high price.
13:15In a funny way, the high prices that we observe right now may cause low prices eventually.
13:22Producers right now that have healthy hens, you can bet they're expanding their production.
13:30Still, infectious disease experts warn that the mutation of the virus
13:34makes market recovery more complicated this time around.
13:39So is there any way to save money these days?
13:43Trader Joe's, Aldi, and Costco often have the best deals on eggs.
13:48But that doesn't help if you can't find any in stock.
13:51What you can find are substitutes, like bananas and flaxseed for baking,
13:57chickpea flour for an omelet, or good old-fashioned liquid egg substitute.
14:02And if you're worried about protein, consider other options, like beans, seeds, or nuts.
14:09Even if you aren't quite ready to make the change, rewriting your favorite recipes to be egg-free
14:14might come in handy the next time egg prices spike.