Bird flu concerns, egg shortages rise in Lehigh Valley

As cases of the highly pathogenic avian influenza – also referred to as the bird flu – continue to rise nationwide, the Lehigh Valley is beginning to feel the effects. 

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture announced on Jan. 27 that the first case of bird flu in Pennsylvania poultry was detected in Lehigh County. The virus was found in a 50,000-bird chicken flock, resulting in transportation restrictions for poultry products within a 10-kilometer radius of the affected farm. 

As of publication, 2,346,270 birds in Pennsylvania have been affected by the bird flu outbreak in the last 30 days, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. This includes seven commercial and nine backyard flocks. 

“There is no treatment for (avian influenza),” the department’s website states. “The only way to stop the disease is to depopulate all affected and exposed poultry.” 

Although bird flu is often fatal to poultry, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the risk to humans remains very low. 

But the widespread depopulation of poultry has contributed to a national egg shortage, leaving many grocery store shelves bare. 

Weis Markets on Schoenersville Road in Bethlehem is experiencing some of these effects. 

The store offers a rewards program, which allows customers to convert 100 points to the purchase of an 18-count carton of eggs for $2.99. Previously, customers could use their points to purchase as many cartons as they wished per transaction, but that has now been limited to one. 

While the store hasn’t experienced major shortages from its suppliers, Nancy Santiago, a customer experience manager at Weis Markets in Bethlehem, said certain brands are in short supply. 

“Eggland’s Best are really tough right now to get,” Santiago said. 

Santiago also said this is the first time she has seen such a shortage since she started working at Weis Markets 25 years ago — including at other Weis locations prior to the opening of the  Bethlehem store.

Both Weis Markets and the GIANT supermarket on West Union Boulevard have posted signs in the egg aisles explaining the higher prices and apologizing for the inconvenience caused by the shortage. At these locations, only private-label eggs are currently available for purchase, with no national brands — including Eggland’s Best.

As of 2022, Northampton County had 421 farms with 4,007 layers, a term used to describe female chickens raised for egg production, according to the Northampton County 2022 Census of Agriculture. 

Demand for eggs from these farms has surged due to supermarket shortages. 

Misty Valley Farm, a family-owned farm in Northampton, is one of the suppliers struggling to keep up with current consumer demand.

“I don’t even have eggs for retail sale right now because of the demand,” said Misty Valley owner Angela Link. “I’m getting phone calls constantly. People are very upset they can’t get their eggs.” 

She said she has been selling mostly to egg subscribers and wholesale customers, including Roasted, a cafe in South Bethlehem. 

Founded in 2016, Misty Valley Farm originally focused on organic produce. It has since expanded to selling plants and vegetables, and housing about 1,000 egg-laying hens. 

As a pasture-raised farm, Link said Misty Valley Farm allows its hens to roam outside from sunrise to sunset, which requires significantly more care than a commercial henhouse. 

“It’s a lot more labor intensive, especially during the winter,” she said. “Things are freezing constantly. You have to worry about predators. There’s just a lot of ‘extra’ involved with pasture-raised eggs.”

The outbreak of avian influenza has exacerbated these challenges.

Because pasture-raised hens live outdoors, they are more likely to come in contact with wild birds – such as waterfowl or geese – which could introduce the virus to the flock.

To mitigate the risk, Link said the farm has implemented strict biosecurity measures. 

“We don’t let anybody in with our flocks, and anybody that works here has to either have no poultry at home or wear completely different gear when they come in,” she said. 

According to a Department of Agriculture press release, biosecurity measures like these are the “key to minimizing the spread of the virus.”

To meet growing demand, Link said Misty Valley Farm has ordered more hens for the spring and summer. She also said the farm hopes to resume retail sales soon.

As egg supply dwindles, prices are expected to continue rising. 

Richard Krohn, a professor of economics and business at Moravian University, said since eggs are considered a necessity with few substitutes, consumers are unlikely to change their purchasing habits despite higher prices. 

“If your rent doubles, that’s a problem,” Krohn said. “But if the price of eggs doubles, yeah it’s annoying, but you’re probably still going to stay with your habits. You’re not going to leave out the eggs in a recipe just because the price of eggs has doubled.” 

Krohn’s hypothetical scenario is meant to demonstrate how the same level of change can affect consumption in different ways. Since demand for eggs is generally inelastic and takes up less of a consumer’s budget, the price increase is likely not enough to change consumer’s egg needs. 

Although economists can’t be sure how much higher egg prices will get this year, the current price of a dozen large eggs is already 53% higher than in January of last year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Beyond supermarkets, rising prices are also impacting restaurants. Krohn said restaurants like Waffle House have begun imposing surcharges on eggs.

It remains unclear when egg supply levels will stabilize and when the bird flu outbreak will subside. The Department of Agriculture  expects cases to ebb and flow based on wild bird migrations across the U.S.