Egg Prices Are High. They Will Likely Go Higher.

Avian influenza has led to a shortage of eggs and wholesale prices that are through the roof. Consumers can expect to feel the pain for a while.

On a trip to a Walmart in Ozark, Mo., in early January, Laura Modrell was surprised to see shoppers “standing around and gasping” in the grocery’s dairy section. As she got closer, she saw that the shelves, where there would normally be stacks of egg cartons, were nearly empty.

“All of the normal-size cartons of eggs were practically gone,” Ms. Modrell said. “I heard some elderly people being really upset.”

Across the country, shoppers in grocery stores are facing empty shelves and higher prices for what has traditionally been an inexpensive source of protein: eggs.

And it’s likely to get worse.

Volatile egg prices have been a part of the grocery shopping experience partly because of inflation, but also because of an avian influenza, or bird flu, that made its way to the United States in 2022. That influenza, caused by the H5N1 virus, has infected or killed 136 million birds thus far.

But the outbreak has recently intensified. More than 30 million chickens — roughly 10 percent of the nation’s egg-laying population — have been killed in just the last three months, to prevent the spread of the disease. It could take months before the supply of egg-laying chickens returns to the normal level of around 318 million, roughly the equivalent of one chicken per person.