Should you had been planning to dye eggs this Easter, successfully, probably go for adorning some cookies instead. That’s because of, after a yr of climbing prices, the worth of eggs stays to be frustratingly extreme.
The widespread worth of a dozen big, Grade A eggs in February was $4.21, in accordance with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ shopper worth index, revealed March 14. That’s up — OK, strategy, strategy up — from $2.01 a yr earlier.
Eggs aren’t alone referring to rising meals costs; you’ve possibly noticed that, on the complete, groceries are pricier. The index for groceries elevated 10.2% yr over yr, in accordance with the CPI report, which is a measure of the widespread change in prices paid by U.S. prospects.
Eggs, notably, for the time being are so pricey on account of a fowl flu that started in January 2022 and has led to the deaths of virtually 59 million birds, in accordance with the U.S. Division of Agriculture. So there’s a present and demand topic, to say the least, and inflation hasn’t helped.
However there is also a lightweight on the end of the fridge: Eggs are lastly getting cheaper. Whereas the egg index elevated 11.1% from November to December, it decreased 6.7% from January to February, in accordance with the CPI.
As for various Easter-related meals — that ham dinner may actually really feel a contact pricier, as its index elevated 3.3% from January to February. However, hey, prices for lettuce, dried beans, peas and lentils are down since February. Good info for those who want to go for a vegetarian menu.
Should you’re feeling festive and have to shell out for pricey eggs to dye, on the very least make sure they’re fit for human consumption. Refrigerate hard-boiled eggs inside two hours of cooking, and use them inside one week, advises the Egg Security Heart, an organization that represents enterprise egg producers. Or just keep on with the frosted cookies.
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Laura McMullen writes for NerdWallet. E mail: [email protected] Twitter: @lauraemcmullen.
