President Donald Trump discussed criticism of high egg prices in an exclusive interview with ABC News, criticizing his predecessor for the increase in prices and claiming what he described as a recent decrease in egg prices.
“Do you remember the important with the eggs? They hit me the first week, ‘eggs, eggs, eggs’, as if it were my fault. I said:’ I did not cause this problem. This problem was caused by [Joe] Biden, “Trump told Terry Moran from ABC News.
“Egg prices have dropped,” Trump added later.
The eggs are shown on a supermarket shelf, on April 11, 2025, in San Anselmo, California.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
The comments resonated the statements made repeatedly by Trump since he assumed the position, but his evaluation of egg prices is potentially misleading, some food economists said to ABC News.
The prices of retail eggs, or prices paid by buyers, have risen during the first months of the Trump term, which means that household budgets have been criticized for the worsening of egg costs, economists said.
On the contrary, wholesale prices of eggs, the amount that supermarkets pay to suppliers, have fallen significantly since Trump assumed the position, although Trump seemed to exaggerate the amount of decrease during the ABC News interview.
It is not clear when and to what extent the decrease in wholesale prices of eggs will translate into relief for consumers, economists added.
“Egg prices have increased at a retail level and that is really important when evaluating the claim that President Trump did yesterday,” said David Ortega, food economist at Michigan State University.
Parke Wilde, a food economist at the University of Tufts, added: “I encourage people who are reading news about food prices to focus on consumer prices, not wholesale prices, because that is what matters to real consumers.”
Economists also greatly rejected the attribution of the guilt of egg prices to any president, whether former President Joe Biden or Trump, saying that a president exerts a minimal influence on the costs of the daily egg.
“The president has little or no control over egg prices,” Ortega said. “Any change, whether egg prices rise or fall, have almost nothing to do with what the president or any other policy manufacturer is doing.”
Despite Trump’s statement that egg prices are falling, the price paid by buyers has increased significantly since he assumed the position, food economists said.
The average retail price of a dozen eggs rose from $ 4.95 in January to $ 6.22 in March, the most recent month for which there are data available. That change in the price amounted to a 25%peak, US Labor Statistics Office The data show.
In recent years, aviar flu, also known as Aviar flu, has decimated the supply of eggs, while demand has persisted, raising the highest prices.
“Even when egg prices have exploded during the last year or two, we have really seen a really strong egg demand,” Trey Malone, food economist at Purdue University, told ABC.
“The reality is that it is really difficult to replace eggs. I can’t do cookies without eggs if I want to make grandmother’s recipe.”
In recent months, however, the increase in the prices of retail eggs has coincided with a decline in wholesale prices. This decrease is largely due to the decrease in avian flu outbreak, food economists said to ABC News.
When Trump refers to a drop in egg prices, he may be referring to the decrease in wholesale prices. In a memorandum on Tuesday that lists economic achievements, the White House highlighted the fall in wholesale prices of eggs and acknowledged that retail prices can still be high for some consumers.
“Most consumers have seen relief in prices on the shelf, but all consumers should see it within next month or two,” said the White House.
Exclusive news from ABC: President Donald J. Trump sits with the presenter and national correspondent Senior Terry Moran, on April 29, 2025, since Trump marks his first 100 days in office.
ABC News
Talking to ABC News on Tuesday, Trump said: “Eggs have dropped 87% since I got involved.”
Trump has provided different figures for the size of the egg prices. On April 17, he said that prices had fallen 92%, while on April 4 he said that egg prices had fallen 87%.
Each of these figures exaggerates the fall in wholesale prices of eggs, according to USDA data.
On January 21, the day after Trump assumed the position, the average wholesale price of a dozen eggs was $ 6.5; Until April 30, that price had fallen to $ 3.25, a Commercial economy The USDA data analysis shows. That change in the price amounts to a decrease of approximately 50%.
“It is not accurate to say that egg prices have decreased by 87%,” Ortega said. “Wholesale prices of eggs have dropped, but they are not low for that.”
The decrease in wholesale prices of eggs can result in a drop in prices paid by consumers, but the moment and reach of relief still are not clear, food economists said.
The delay owes in part to the nature of the contracts between companies and egg suppliers, which often block prices for weeks, experts said. Supermarkets can also be reluctant to cut egg prices, some experts added, since customers have largely maintained egg purchases at higher prices.
“Because people talk about the increase in egg prices, they are still buying eggs,” Malone said.
ABC News’ Emily Chang contributed to this report.
