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The price of eggs has been a very hot topic of conversation in America as the price of the kitchen staple has skyrocketed. That issue has been much less pronounced in Mexico, and it’s subsequently caused a rise in the number of people attempting to smuggle them into the United States.
The price of eggs has historically fluctuated a bit due to the many different factors at play, but you’ve rarely had to shell out more than $3 for the average dozen since the start of the new millennium.
However, you’d be hard-pressed to find many grocery stores that are currently coming close to that price due to the dramatic increase consumers have been forced to stomach thanks in no small part to the spread of a strain of avian flu that has been the primary factor in the culinary crisis.
We were arguably treated to the Canary In The Coalmine Moment when Waffle House announced it was adding a 50-cent surcharge for eggs in February, and based on the number of people flocking to Tractor Supply to buy live chicks this year, plenty of Americans have decided to take matters into their own hands instead of buying the chicken byproduct in stores (where it’s not rare to find a carton going for $10 a pop).
According to The Wall Street Journal, Mexico has been relatively immune to the egg issue that’s had a significantly larger impact on its neighbor to the north (they cost around one-third of the price they’re currently fetching in America), and new numbers released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection highlight the rise in people attempting to take advantage of that reality.
While you’re technically allowed to bring eggs into America from another country as long as you declare them at the border, the Department of Agriculture has restrictions on countries “affected with certain serious poultry diseases”—a list Mexico has been on for more than a decade.
The spike in egg prices in the United States has resulted in a spike in the number of people who’ve had them confiscated at the border compared to last year; there’s been a 36% rise in the number of overall cases, but it’s closer to 50% near the Texas border and over 100% when it comes to San Diego.
A border patrol spokesman told the outlet the majority of the situations stem from people bringing relatively small quantities for personal use who are simply unaware they’re not allowed to enter the United States with eggs in tow. However, they noted the agency has issued a number of civil penalties ($300 for the first-time offense) to people who’ve been caught with them after failing to initially declare them.
The price of eggs has recently started to drop at the wholesale level as bird flu cases begin to fall, but there’s still no way to firmly predict when (or if) they’ll get back to what most people have become accustomed to.