USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins discussed wholesale egg costs going down after a national outbreak of bird flu during Thursday’s Cabinet meeting at the White House with President Donald Trump. (Credit: Pool)
Egg lovers are scrambling as prices may have cracked all-time highs ahead of Easter, but federal officials say relief is already on the way.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average price of a dozen eggs hit $6.23 in March, up nearly 6% from February, and more than 60% higher than a year ago. But behind the scenes, a sharp drop in wholesale costs is setting the stage for a rebound at the checkout counter.
“Wholesale prices of eggs … are down, depending on who you’re looking at, between 50 and 65%,” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said during a press gaggle outside the White House Thursday. “We’ve said all along the retail prices will just take a while to catch up … but we feel very confident that will continue to come back down.”
The dramatic drop in wholesale prices, from highs of over $8 per dozen in February to around $3.26 in early April, is the result of what the USDA calls a “five-pronged strategy” to address both avian flu and market volatility.
AGRICULTURE SECRETARY DOESN’T EXPECT EGG PRICES TO SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE AFTER TRUMP TARIFF ANNOUNCEMENT
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins looks on as President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House Wednesday. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)
“Secretary Rollins is committed to lowering egg prices for consumers and continues to use all tools at her disposal to do so,” a USDA spokesperson confirmed in an exclusive statement to FOX Business. “After implementing a five-pronged plan to lower egg prices a little over a month ago, the wholesale price of eggs has dropped more than 56%. It takes several weeks for a wholesale price reduction to be felt in the retail market. That is why we must remain diligent. The plan is working.”
The USDA’s five-pronged plan includes strengthening biosecurity on farms to prevent further bird flu outbreaks, increasing indemnity payments to help farmers repopulate flocks faster and cutting regulatory red tape to expand egg supply and speed up delivery.
It also invests $100 million in avian flu research and vaccine development, while temporarily expanding imports, including from Turkey and South Korea, to ease pressure on domestic supply.
A THIRD OF AMERICANS STOPPED BUYING EGGS; WON’T REVERT BACK UNTIL PRICES DROP
National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins during the signing of executive orders in the Oval Office at the White House Wednesday. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)
The sharp rise in egg prices this year was driven in large part by a severe outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), which swept through poultry farms in early 2025. To contain the spread, millions of egg-laying hens were culled across several major producing states, significantly reducing the national supply. According to USDA data, the outbreak in 2025 has been one of the most disruptive since the virus reemerged in U.S. flocks in 2022, with commercial layer operations hit especially hard.
Rollins, speaking alongside Trump during Thursday’s Cabinet meeting, credited the broader economic agenda for supporting rural America during the transition.
“This president has a vision of realigning the American economy to ensure that we are putting America first,” she said. “We believe that these changes will, in short order, create unlimited and unprecedented prosperity for our farmers. … But, if not, the USDA is there in the short term to ensure — just as we did in term one — that our farmers are taken care of.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, center, speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., Thursday. (Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
With Easter just ahead, Rollins called it the “Super Bowl of eggs.” The USDA and the White House are betting the recent wholesale plunge will soon show up on grocery store shelves.
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With egg prices high this Easter, many Americans are getting creative. Some families are skipping real eggs altogether and dyeing objects like marshmallows and potatoes instead.
Others are turning to reusable options like plastic or wooden eggs from craft stores. These can be decorated just like real eggs and saved for future years.
“Eggs are down big, right?” Trump asked during his Cabinet meeting Thursday.
