Egg tax in America: another wave of price increases may come to the food market

Tariff war mood returns

As part of the new tariff policy announced on April 2, the US would impose tariffs of 10-26 percent on egg exports from Turkey, Brazil and South Korea, among others. This is particularly problematic because the US egg supply is partly reliant on exports from these countries after the bird flu epidemic. The volume of imports amounted to 1.6 million dozen between January and February – while there were practically no egg imports a year earlier.

According to the draft prepared by the White House:

Eggs from Turkey and Brazil would be subject to a 10% tariff,

And products from South Korea would be subject to a 26% tariff.

A fragile balance in the egg market

The bird flu outbreak in 2022 led to the culling of about 170 million poultry in the United States, causing a brutal supply shortage and rising prices. According to the latest data, although egg prices have already fallen, the wholesale price is still 60% higher than a year earlier, at around $3 per dozen.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told Fox News that she “cannot promise that everything will be perfect” and does not expect prices to fall quickly. So there is still considerable uncertainty in the sector, especially now that import tariffs could emerge as another factor that pushes up prices.