“We’re keeping them behind the counter as customers walk in and ask for or request for eggs. We’re limited to one tray per customer,” said Abo Mused.
SAN ANTONIO — You may have seen empty shelves when you were looking to buy eggs this week, and the bird flu is to blame.
According to local retailers, this is causing havoc in the egg industry, and impacting your wallet.
“There’s a huge shortage of eggs throughout the country,” said Abo Mused, Owner/Manager of Alamo Farms.
Mused says bird flu is spreading across the country, and the U.S. Government is taking action.
“They’re condemning a lot of birds out of precaution. A lot of these birds that they’re condemning, are the egg producing chickens,” said Mused.
Mused says this is causing a huge egg shortage throughout the country.
“It’s economics 101, there’s a consistent demand, because of the shortage in supply, the prices have gone gone up tremendously,” said Mused.
On Thursday, workers at Alamo Farms say they received more than 200 calls from customers looking for eggs. With the demand, they are keeping their shelves empty.
“We’re keeping them behind the counter as customers walk in and ask for or request for eggs. We’re limited to one tray per customer,” said Mused.
Over at Porter Poultry & Egg Company Inc., Vice-President, Mauricio Lopez says it’s the same story.
“It’s just wiping out a bunch of heard of chickens, and It’s just causing the egg market just to skyrocket,” said Lopez.
In September, Porter Poultry & Egg Company Inc. was selling a 15 dozen box of X-Large eggs for $45. In October it jumped to $65, and now the box is $95.
Lopez says customers have sticker shock.
“They expect the gold bar to be in the carton,” said Lopez.
Lopez says the prices are impacting businesses.
“A lot of bakeries, a lot of restaurants are like, huevos rancheros, panaderias, they use a lot of eggs, so that hurts their margins,” said Lopez.
Businesses can eat the cost or pass it onto consumers.
Mused at Alamo Farms realizes eggs are a staple in people’s diet, so he’s trying to help the community by keep prices low. 30 brown large eggs are selling for $10
“That’s really not covering the increase in price, but I’m trying to keep it as low as possible,” said Mused.