The nationwide egg shortage has led to bizarre pricing at New York-area checkout counters — with cartons of regular eggs costing significantly more than the organic and free-range variety.
At Big Apple grocer Morton Williams, a dozen white, regular eggs from an in-store brand were going for a whopping $9.99 this week, while a carton of Land O Lakes brown eggs — produced “without hormones, steroids, or antibiotics” — cost just $5.59.
Other organic and cage-free varieties at the supermarket’s West 57th Street were also selling for well under $10, including $5.69 for a dozen of Egg-Land’s Best “vegetarian-fed hens” eggs, $7.49 for Organic Brown eggs, and $8.49 for Eco Meal Cage-Free Large Brown eggs.
A key reason for the topsy-turvy pricing is that organic, free-range egg farms — despite being hit just as hard by the avian flu as the rest — have been honoring lower-priced distribution contracts, according to Joe Viscomi, assistant director of operations for Morton Williams.
However, many of those contracts are slated to expire in the coming weeks — with the result that organic and cage-free eggs could blow past the $10-a-dozen mark, he added.
“The disparity of the cost of organic brown and cage free eggs versus conventional eggs is closing fast,” Viscomi said.
At the Stew Leonard’s chain in the New York suburbs, the supermarket is charging $10.39 per dozen for its regular, private label brand, while the organic, cage-free eggs are $5.
“Our customers are now asking us how long do eggs last,” owner Stew Leonard told The Post.
The reemergence of the avian flu has led to the culling of 110 million egg-laying hens since 2022.
Skyrocketing egg prices are expected to plague shoppers for months to come, according to Matt Sutton-Vermeulen, principal in the agriculture and food practice at consulting firm, Kearney.
“This outbreak is accelerating and it’s not predictable,” said Sutton-Vermeulen, adding that 14 million hens were slaughtered over the past four weeks.
“I would not bet on a May recovery” as some experts have predicted, he said.
Shoppers scouring the city for less expensive eggs have been able to find some bargains. The Bryant Park Whole Foods in Midtown is selling a dozen premium eggs for $4.69 this week, as The Post reported.
The popularity of the sale forced the store to limit purchases to three cartons per customer, according to a note posted at its entrance.
Many bodegas in the city have already raised prices on sandwiches that include eggs, as The Post reported this week.
Stew Leonard’s, which sells about 100 bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches a day at each of its eight stores for about $4.49, also is eyeing a price increase.
“If egg prices keep going up we have to look at everything we do,” Leonard said.
This week, Waffle House announced a 50 cent surcharge per egg at its 2,000 locations across 25 states.
The Georgia-based chain described the fee as a “temporary targeted surcharge” tied to the “unprecedented” increase in egg prices.
