ST. LOUIS, Mo. — Egg production is increasing as U.S. producers leverage lower grain prices with steady domestic and export demand.
The U.S. table egg laying flock was 295.5 million birds in July, 2 percent higher than 2013. "The table egg industry has been expanding in 2014, and the number of hens in the table egg flock has been higher on a year-over-year basis for the last eight months," said USDA economist Kenneth Mathews in the Livestock and Poultry Outlook.
Producers annually ramp up layer numbers to meet holiday demand for eggs in the final quarter. But Jacques Klempf, Dixie Egg Company, Blackshear, Ga., said changing markets and consumer tastes also played into this year’s decision to expand. "In our area, consumer demand for shell eggs has increased, and not just for conventional eggs but also for specialty eggs," he said.
Specialty eggs include feed enhanced, cage-free and organic eggs, said Klempf.
The U.S. laying flock should increase nearly 9 percent higher than 2013 levels by December, according to the Egg Industry Center at Iowa State University. That puts this December’s flock at 304.9 million hens, compared to 296.1 million last December. Iowa led egg producing states with 52.9 million hens in July; Ohio (30 million) and Indiana (26.5 million) continued as the second- and third-largest states by number of laying hens.
This year’s laying flock is also younger. "The nation’s average flock contained 21.6 percent hens older than 72 weeks of age, which is 3.4 percent lower than the July 2013 average," wrote Egg Industry Center economists Maro Ibarburu and Don Bell in their September report.
USDA projects a 3 percent rise in table egg production for the second half of 2014, and egg producers could capture higher prices in the third quarter.
"Wholesale egg prices in the New York market are forecast at $1.29-$1.32 per dozen in the third quarter of 2014, an increase of around 10 percent from the previous year," said Mathews.
The normal price rise from holiday demand is expected in the fourth quarter, but that will likely keep prices around last year’s levels, according to USDA.
Looking ahead to next year, USDA puts table egg expansion on a slower pace than this year, despite projected lower grain prices. Egg prices in 2015 will likely experience downward pressure due to this year’s expansion.
