A chicken-and-egg problem: Egg prices surge, become as costly as chicken

Mumbai: Egg protein may soon become too costly to afford as egg prices have been steadily rising to the current rate of Rs 7 per piece.

At this rate, eggs are almost as costly as chicken. Poultry farmers in Mumbai have been selling eggs at a monthly average of Rs 582 per 100 eggs in November as compared to Rs 422 in October.

This works out to around Rs 6.5 to Rs 7.5 per piece, which is Rs 120-Rs 135 per kg (supposing the average weight of egg is 55 gms). This is almost equivalent to Rs 130 to Rs 150 – the rate at which chicken is sold.

According to an article in Indian Express, a leading egg products manufacturer in Erode, Tamil Nadu said “Egg prices usually rise at this time due to winter demand, while broiler rates fall because supply goes up, with the birds taking less time to reach slaughter weight. But we have never seen this kind of price spiral in eggs before.”

This unprecedented rise in prices has been attributed to the recent surge in vegetable prices and a consecutive 15 per cent surge in demand for eggs, according to Raju Bhosale, executive member of the National Egg Coordination Committee (NECC). “When vegetables turn costly, people switch to eggs, pushing up its rates as well. This is simple substitution effect,” claimed Bhosale.

Also, drought in parts of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu led to prices of maize rising which is the main input for poultry production.