In the midst of runaway food inflation (it rose 16.6% year-on-year) and the warnings from the Bank of Spain that the increases will continue (it forecasts increases of 12.2% for the whole year); the price of eggs have risen even above those levels. Egg prices in the markets of origin have skyrocketed by more than 30% in the last year in the main markets due to the high prices of feed and energy and the increase in demand for export.
The dozen of the “L” category is trading this week at the Lonja del Ebro, in Zaragoza, at 2.81 euros. Its president, Fernando Calvo, assures that during 2022, “these increases in the fixed costs of the product at origin have had to be transferred, and although they have been gradual increases, these have been constant throughout the year 2022”. The same argument is shared by the Lonja de Bellpuig.
The egg market began the year calmly, with demand and supply more or less in balance; during the first weeks the prices have not registered changes, with a tight market. It has been since mid-February when the situation has become tense.
According to the Lonja del Ebro, the short supply of eggs in several European countries, with lower productions than in other years, and a rise in prices in their respective markets, have led to an increase in orders for export to countries such as France or Germany. “Spain has always been a country with a surplus production and we have been able to export, but right now the orders for Europe have increased and with prices higher than the national operation, which have caused an imbalance between the supply-demand relationship of the sector, with a balance favorable to the demand”, they detail from the Lonja.
Josep Golanó, a producer from Sant Guim de Freixenet, assures that producers have been selling very cheaply for many years, which has led to the closure of some farms, which, added to the cases of avian flu in Europe, has slowed down exports from France or Poland.
Ana Toda, director of the Catalan Poultry Federation, assures that the egg sector has had increases in costs that are valued at 45% in one year while globally there are imbalances in supply due to the impact of influenza disease. “At a national level it has not affected -he specifies- but in some countries, some areas have been left without layers.” The director adds that “the price of eggs has risen a lot, this is very clear, it is perhaps one of the products that has risen the most, but it is important to know that the producer has not really been able to cover all the increase in costs ”, concludes the director.
The Bonàrea chain assures that it has detected “exaggerated” purchases in its stores by non-regular customers, a situation that the company attributes to shortages and that its eggs “are the most competitive on the market.” The company points out that these purchases, sometimes 30 dozen, have caused damage to its regular customers. With that argument, he decided to limit the purchase in stores to 10 dozen per customer to guarantee a constant supply.
