Sacramento, Feb 8 : A severe egg shortage is gripping California and the western United States as a deadly avian flu outbreak continues to decimate poultry flocks, driving egg prices to record highs and forcing food businesses to adapt their operations.

The price for cage-free large white eggs reached 8.65 US dollars per dozen in California when delivered wholesale, while organic brown eggs were sold at 9.39 dollars per dozen, said the US Department of Agriculture (USDA)'s Daily National Shell Egg Index Report on Friday.

The report shows that egg prices in California have more than doubled since 2024.

Beth, a Bay Area resident who gave only her first name, shared her recent struggles with egg shopping. "I checked several grocery stores in my neighbourhood, but eggs were either sold out or too expensive," she said.

A trip to a Costco store proved fruitless, with empty shelves greeting her as well. Store staff advised her to return early in the morning to improve her chances.

Small businesses are bearing the brunt of the shortage. At Victoria Pastry Company in San Francisco's North Beach neighbourhood, co-owner Merie Belluomini expressed deep concern about securing ingredients for their handmade baked goods.

"Since late October, prices are high, high, high. Today I was wondering when this is going to stop. We are worried we won't get any eggs. What are we going to do?" Belluomini told ABC7 News, Xinhua news agency reported.

On Tuesday, Waffle House, a 24-hour restaurant chain, introduced a 50-cent surcharge per egg in response to the most severe egg shortage and dramatically increased costs in decades.

Restaurants are getting creative to manage costs without alienating customers. In San Diego, Breakfast Republic owner Johan Engman told NBC San Diego they are adjusting portion sizes rather than compromising quality.

Some establishments are exploring plant-based alternatives, with Zareen Khan, owner of Zareen's restaurants in Palo Alto and Mountain View, California, considering increased use of tofu as an egg substitute.

The crisis stems from an ongoing outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), which, according to USDA data, led to the culling of over 20 million egg-laying hens in the last quarter of 2024 alone. The virus has caused recurring waves of infection since 2022, severely disrupting egg production nationwide.

Outbreaks of HPAI in commercial table egg layer flocks continue into February, with new cases reported in Ohio and the first case reported in Pennsylvania, according to the USDA's Weekly Egg Market Overview published on Friday.

Shell egg availability is still limited in many stores. To manage supply, grocers are restricting how many eggs customers can buy, stopping sales promotions and keeping prices high to control demand, according to the report.

USDA spokesperson Linda Matthews said that rebuilding flocks takes considerable time, as newly hatched hens require several weeks to begin laying eggs. The agency predicts egg prices could rise by an additional 20 percent in 2025.

Brian Earnest, an economist at CoBank, part of the US Farm Credit System, said in an article that avian flu was once mostly seasonal but now appears year-round. "That seasonality appears to be gone," he noted, warning that tight supply could persist well into 2025, adding that steady increases in egg demand make shortages worse.

Nine US states, including California, currently have laws requiring cage-free housing for laying hens. About 40 per cent of US table egg layers are currently kept in cage-free systems.

The situation is particularly challenging in California due to strict regulations. The state required all eggs to be cage-free by January 2025, further exacerbating an already strained market. This transition and existing space requirements for hens have made California more vulnerable to supply disruptions.

The crisis has prompted calls for greater resilience in food supply chains. As California's agriculture sector grapples with this latest challenge, experts suggest the situation could lead to lasting changes in consumer behaviour and industry practices.

/IANS