U.S. Turns to Europe for Egg Imports in Bid to Lower Prices at Home

Desperation has the U.S. looking across the Atlantic for eggs. A devastating bird flu outbreak slashed American egg production by 720 million in February 2025 compared to the previous year—a 10% nosedive that sent wholesale prices soaring to an eye-watering $8.15 per dozen. That’s a lot of expensive omelets.

By late February, the USDA was practically begging European egg associations for help. Germany, Denmark, Italy, Poland, Sweden, Austria, Norway, Spain—they called everyone. The U.S. even secured commitments from Turkey and South Korea. When you’re short 50 million eggs daily, you can’t be picky about where they come from.

Desperate USDA officials dialed up every egg-producing nation they could think of. Beggars in a 50-million-egg daily deficit can’t be choosers.

The problem? Europeans and Americans handle eggs completely differently. It’s like comparing apples to, well, eggs. EU regulations generally prohibit washing eggs due to concerns that it removes the natural protective layer and increases vulnerability to bacteria. Delightful.

Meanwhile, U.S. regulations demand sanitized, refrigerated eggs. Polish officials are currently assessing if they can meet these US food safety requirements. One expert called them “two systems that could not be more different.”

Europe has its own problems. Germany only produces 73% of the eggs it needs, importing the rest from Holland. Other European countries face their own avian flu outbreaks. Easter’s coming up there too, you know. Nobody’s swimming in extra eggs.

If imports happen, they’ll likely arrive as powdered or frozen egg products rather than shells. Boring, but practical. These processed imports could free up domestic shell eggs for consumers. The market is showing signs of improvement with wholesale prices already dropping from their peak. The U.S. has already cut its own egg exports to keep more at home.

Political tensions don’t help. Trump’s steel tariffs, threats to seize Greenland, and disparaging remarks about Ukraine haven’t exactly endeared America to European suppliers. Still, money talks. If the price is right, eggs will move.

There’s some good news. By March 21, wholesale prices had dropped to $3.27 per dozen—a more than 50% decrease from the peak. Year-to-date losses of 31 million hens due to HPAI have severely impacted the national flock. No major bird flu outbreaks have been reported for nearly a month. Retail prices are finally starting to come down too.

Easter and Passover demand might drive prices up temporarily in April, but the worst seems over. For now, anyway. Americans can get back to debating whether eggs are actually healthy instead of taking out loans to buy them.