[The Epoch Times, January 25, 2023](The Epoch Times reporter Yin Ruina compiled a report) The US Department of Agriculture (US Department of Agriculture) reported that as of January 20, the average price of a carton of eggs in the Bay Area was $5.97. . That’s good news, as it was down 11% from the previous week.
But compared with the same week’s egg sales across the country, the price is still high. New York averaged $3.36 a dozen, the Midwest was $3.87, and the central states were as low as $2.40.
Facing high prices, Bay Area families are now raising their own chickens.
“Here’s the Boss Lady, she’s in charge, the red one is Stella Skygems, the black one is King Nakamura, and we have John Candy, the big guy here. “Walnut Creek (Walnut Creek) resident Daniela. Daniella Magana, describing the chickens in her backyard.
Watching the chickens frolic in their yard is a lot of fun, and the Maganas can ignore the ever-increasing egg prices at the store.
“We have about four to six eggs a day, which is perfect for a family of four,” Daniela said.
Recently, these four chickens have been laying eggs continuously.
Egg prices in December 2022 were up 60% from a year earlier, according to the latest Consumer Price Index.
In California, the average price for a dozen eggs hit $7.37 in January, up from an average of $4.84 in early December, the USDA reported. In January 2022, the average cost of a dozen eggs is $2.35.
The surge in prices is the result of a combination of inflation and an outbreak of bird flu that has decimated the number of hens on farms across the United States.
Nearly 58 million chickens had been infected as of early January, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said, in the deadliest outbreak in U.S. history.
Egg supplies have been weakened as infected chickens have to be slaughtered. Farms need time to replace lost hens with new flocks that are not infected and ready to lay eggs.
Daniela said: “It’s great that the price of eggs has gone up, I’ve heard of people who can’t even find eggs in the shops, so it’s a luxury to have eggs.”
Chicken farming also has other environmental benefits.
“We crush the eggshells and use them as fertilizer for our citrus plants,” says Daniela. “An added bonus is that they eat all our leftovers, so we waste a lot less food.”
It’s a great deal for less trash, more protein for the family, and minimal maintenance.
“It was surprisingly easy, we were worried it would be a lot of work, but it’s like having any other pet in the house, like a dog,” Daniela said.
Just clean the coop, feed and re-water weekly, which costs a little less than what you would pay for a carton of eggs at the store.
Responsible editor: Song Jiayi