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Sky-high egg prices are scrambling breakfast and hatching a DIY boom.
Egg prices are cracking records—period. Thanks to widespread bird flu, the January U.S. average dozen price of $4.95 appeared to have just been the appetizer, as the price jumped yet again in February, setting a new record of $5.90/dozen. And the U.S. Department of Agriculture expects prices to soar another 41% this year.
The outbreak is affecting local businesses as well, with restaurants forced to up the cost of breakfast, brunch and other egg-heavy items. Spots like Watkins Grill and Ex-Voto in the Durham Food Hall have already made the change.
“Despite the insane cost of eggs, we’ve done our best to hold off and not change the price of our breakfast burrito,” Ex-Voto shared in early March. “We’ve operated at a loss for seven weeks, but we’ve gotta do this price bump.” After some debate, the go-to grab-and-go Mexican hot spot decided against shrinking its popular brekky wrap because “we’re not McDonalds” and messing with product consistency is just not an option. Now up from $12 to $15, the “Crunchwrap Factory” promises prices will go down as soon as the yolk economy settles.
In addition to high-rolling huevos and the like, the spike has hatched a home movement: backyard chickens. Rental services (yes, they’re a thing) like Rent The Chicken are booming, while such local hatcheries as The Urban Chicken are selling out a month or two before chicks even crack their shells. But is setting up a flock in your backyard all it’s cracked up to be? Here, the lay of the land.
Chicks don’t lay eggs:
Full-grown hens? You could see eggs in a week. But if you’re starting with chicks, get comfy—your first bounty is six months away.
$teep startup:
Chicks run only $5–$20ish each—but their real price tag? A coop can set you back anywhere from a few hundred to thousands of dollars.
Hens gotta eat too:
With five fowl on egg duty, Wake Forest’s Renee Miller shells out $50 for chicken feed every ~six weeks.
HOA crackdown:
Raleigh’s cool with chickens, but better check your covenants before you ruffle any feathers.
It’s a job:
“[Chickens] are relatively low maintenance,” says Miller, “but they’re still animals. I have to care for [them] and consider them our pets.”
Savings scrambled:
Miller’s hens crank out ~30 eggs a week—aka ~10 dozen a month, matching a $50 bill at the grocer. But when you factor in feed, startup costs and time? The savings fly the coop.
FARM-FRESH ALTERNATIVES
Skip the grocery store for these fresh egg ops around town.*
- S&L Farm, available at Midtown Farmers Market: $9/dozen
- Yellow Dog Bread Co., Seaboard & Person Street District: $6/dozen, sourced from Hillsborough’s Latta’s Egg Ranch
- Rebus Works, Warehouse District: $7/dozen sourced from MyrtleBee Farms; available direct delivery twice a month for $8/dozen within allotted delivery area
- MAE Farm, available at State Farmers Market every day: $6/dozen for extra-large brown eggs; ostrich, goose and quail eggs also on offer
- Juicekeys, Quail Corners: $9.95/dozen from Oxford’s The Fatted Calf Ranch;
- also available for farm pickup and at The Franklinton Market
- Pope Farms, Knightdale: $7/dozen, buy at the farm from the self-serve box
- Grasshopper Farms, Knightdale: $7.50/dozen, buy directly from the farm
- Valley Love Farm, available at Holly Springs Farmers Market: $8/$9/$10/$11 for a dozen medium/large/XL/jumbo eggs
*Pricing and availability as of press time
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