Wait a Minute, Can Anyone Explain This?

Egg laying chickens and chickens we eat are kept far separated (on different farms completely) so just because the egg laying chickens caught bird flu doesn't mean the chickens we ear have caught it. There is also the difference between the ages of the birds. Chickens we eat are usually only three months old whereas chickens that lay eggs are considerably older (around 18 to 25 weeks old) so it takes a LOT longer to replace them than it does to replace the chickens that we eat

There is a difference between poultry farms for chicken meat and those that produce eggs. Depends on which ones are affected by H5N1 hits. I read about a family’s poultry (egg) farm that had to destroy their entire flock of 50.000 birds.

Dale just explained that fryers (that we eat) and layers (that lay eggs) are often housed separately. Not all the layers got bird flu and some fryers could have gotten it. But apparently there was more disease found in the layers which resulted in destroying chickens and the shortage of eggs, but there were still more fryers that are being sold in grocery stores and restaurants. This is pretty much what DE @DaddyEvil was saying. So, sorry, but no conspiracies.

We used to have 10,000 laying hens. We had zero meat chickens. They are so different. So it doesn't sound strange to me that meat chickens haven't been affected by something that affected laying hens.

Perhaps the egg-laying chickens are kept separately from the chickens we eventually eat. But still, something doesn't seem right here.

It is an interesting question. I do know the historic price of inflation during the Biden years affected the prices of all products including eggs. And although the rate of inflation improved as Biden finally allowed refineries to release the oil and gas reserves to lower transportation costs, inflationary prices do not immediately cease, it takes time. On the egg question, it's a supply and demand issue, isn't it? Less egg producing chickens equals less egg supply creating a shortage. Less product sold by farmers/businesses leads to less profit for them meaning the price remains high, so they make a profit. This gets passed down to the customers. On the chicken question I'm not sure but perhaps there is some truth to the responses given here about egg laying chickens and which are used for what. Also, perhaps maintenance costs like feed factor into the pricing. I do know bird flu cannot be passed from eating cooked chicken. It would kill the virus. Anyway, I think the answer may lie in how these factors impact chicken producers and egg producers differently. But definitely an interesting assumption...

Because chickens are designed and raised as egg layers or "meat" birds. Lots of different species and for those companies raising them that is the only kind they have. Meat birds are usually butchered at 3 months old. Egg layers can lay up to 10 years or more if fed a good diet.

I can't explain it, but I've heard whole chickens are selling for $1.99 a pound here, not sure what eggs cost. Last time I was at the grocery store I asked the woman behind me (who happened to be buying eggs) what they cost. She said $6.99 a dozen.

I can't explain it, but I bet my raised in the country husband can. I'll post later.

I thought it would be relatively short lived as surely egg laying hens can quickly be replaced?

The situation seems to bring out some interesting questions about chicken and egg market. True that bird flu has caused a significant loss of egg-laying hens, which has resulted in significant drop in egg supply. However, the reasons we do not see the impact on chicken prices is due to different roles these chicken play in supply chain. Egg laying hens are specifically bred for egg production, while broiler chickens are raised for meat and a separate supply group. Even though both are chickens, their roles are not exchangeable in productions, so shortage of egg lay hens does not necessarily impact meat supply from chickens. Chicken producers are able to adjust more quickly by shifting production methods to meet the meet demand while egg industry face complex disruptions. Chicken farms can continue to operate without significantly reducing the production capacity as broiler chickens can still be raised for meat without being affected by loss of egg laying hens. Chicken industry operate on a different economic scale where profit margins and supply chains differ from those in the egg industry. And this leads to price dynamics. In short , chicken shortage cannot be considered same as egg shortage and hence their price will behave differently.