Rising egg prices are affecting bakeries in the valley
You may have noticed the rising cost of eggs if you went to the grocery store recently. Now, some local bakeries are feeling the effects of the price surge of eggs.
A massive bird flu wave has spread among birds across the country. Forcing farmers to kill millions of birds to prevent the virus from spreading.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, "recent outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the Upper Midwest have had a severe negative impact on commercial table egg layer flocks that continue to disrupt normal marketing patterns."
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in a Tuesday report said eggs prices are higher than they were this time last year.
Hélène Sirou is the owner of Peninsula Pastries in Palm Springs. She’s been managing rising egg prices and they go through nearly 600 eggs a week.
“It affects our bakery because we use a lot of eggs. We use eggs in all our recipes for doughs," said Sirou. “The price has been increased a lot. It's almost double the price and everything.”
She already increased their prices a few months ago and doesn’t want to do it again.
“We cannot increase our retail prices all the time, which is not easy for us," said Sirou.
Andrew Wysocki is the owner of Townie Bagels in Palm Springs.
“[Prices have] gone up and down over-- I've kind of been numb to the fact and don't worry about the prices as much anymore," said Wysocki. "If they continue to go-- if they continue to stay high, I'll worry about it and product price.”
The Department of Agriculture said last year the national average of a dozen large white eggs was $1.60. Now it’s $2.50.
“I've seen [price increases] before in other products, other items, other things. The harder part is when we can't get them. That's when it affects my business," said Wysocki.
He said they also don’t plan to raise their menu prices, but will reconsider if egg prices continue to increase.
“We just hope to continue to have a nice success, like we have for a moment to continue to do all our products handmade from scratch every night. And to continue to be supported by our friendly and nice customers in Palm Springs," said Sirou.
