Even with 65,000 chickens laying eggs for Stewart’s Shops, the girls can’t can’t keep up.
Stewart’s receives 4,400 eggs each day from the Thomas Poultry Farm in Schuylerville, NY, but it’s not enough to keep up with the crazy demand we are experiencing.
According to Urner Barry*, the industry is witnessing an unprecedented demand for eggs. Since early March, the large eggs market cost has surged a staggering 153% – the highest price recorded since the avian flu outbreak in 2015. Customers can expect to see a small price increase due to the spike in demand.
Why the Increased Demand?
As most Americans are now at home following strict social distancing guidelines, the demand for household items has increased dramatically. Stress baking and hoarding have led to a retail egg shortage. The “Quarantine 15” could be a real thing with all these baked goods! And Easter is driving even more demand!
How Many Eggs Can a Chicken Lay?
All egg inventories have been wiped out as demand is at 150% more than normal. There are eggs in the pipeline, but likely not enough. Chickens can only lay one egg per day. So, in order to increase supply egg producers will have to grow their flocks, but it takes 22 weeks for a chick to become a laying hen.
We’re Here for You
With record egg sales, we’re doing our best to keep pace with the demand and keep our eggs in stock. As a quick in and out stop, we’re here for you with all your essentials from gas to groceries.
*Urner Barry is a business publisher specializing in the timely, accurate and unbiased reporting of market news and quotations to clients in the poultry, egg, meat, seafood and related segments of the food industry through a variety of print and non-print media.