With soaring egg prices, New Jersey farmer says she can't keep up with demand
Many people can't help but ask questions when they go to the grocery store: Why are eggs so expensive, and will the "egg-flation" prices ever come down? A New Jersey farmer says there could soon be a crack in the egg shortage, but will that lower prices?
Danielle Wainwright of Clover Valley Farm houses up to 300 hens. While in the chicken coop, we heard a few cackling
"That's called an egg song. When they lay eggs, they announce to the world, 'I laid an egg,'" Wainwright said.
For farmers, that's a happy song. Wainwright, along with her husband Fred, a fifth-generation farmer, raises a mix of different breeds. This results in a variety of different-colored eggs, all nutritionally equal, sold at their farm market, Farm on the Point.
"We are charging $8 a cart of eggs," Wainwright said.
She said the demand is so high that they can't keep up.
"On a consumer side, it's hard to see those prices. Most prices coming from the avian flu outbreak that is now happening," Wainwright said.
She and her husband's chicken coop is protected to keep their birds safe.
"The wild birds are bringing in and spreading the avian flu," Wainwright said.
If there's an outbreak, Wainwright says it could take up to 120 days for her chickens to lay eggs that are safe to consume. Why is this important?
She explains chickens lay one egg a day.
During the winter months, a chicken may only lay an egg every three to four days. But with spring soon arriving, Wainwright says more eggs are coming.
"Chickens lay off of daylight hours, so in the winter when the sun is setting before 4, chickens don't lay a lot of eggs," Wainwright said. "Now that the sun is setting after 5:30 p.m., you are getting more eggs. You are seeing an increase in egg production, which is very exciting."
It's hard for the farm to keep up with the demand. There's a misconception that eggs are cheaper if you purchase them at local farms. As you can see, they are not.
Right now, local farms aren't making a profit from selling eggs.
Wainwright has also sold nearly 100 chickens to people who want to raise their own eggs. However, before you try to build a chicken coop, do your research. It's not as easy as it looks.