US Senators Want An Explanation To High Prices In Eggs

On Thursday Senator Elizabeth Warren and Representative Katie Porter have sent letters to the country’s egg producer seeking answers for why egg prices have spiked to record highs in recent months, according to Reuters.

The letters were to the CEOs of Cal-Maine Foods, Hillandale Farms, Rose Acre Farms, Daybreak Foods, and Versova Management.

“American families working to put food on the table deserve to know whether the increased prices they are paying for eggs represent a legitimate response to reduced supply or out-of-control corporate greed,” wrote Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Representative Katie Porter of California.

Read more: Food Price Spikes Could Be Criminalized As FTC Called To Investigate Eggs

The price of eggs was up 150% in January from a year prior to $4.80 a dozen, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. These spikes are causing concerns among farmers and antitrust advocates who have warned about the power of top agriculture firms to set prices.

In the last months several farm groups have asked federal regulators to probe whether egg companies were price gouging despite claims that avian flu is the cause of the price hikes.

According to lawmakers the spike in prices raises concerns about anti-competitive conduct. As such they requested information on executive compensation, profit margins, avian flu impacts, and whether companies have communicated with one another about egg prices.

Reuters reported that only Cal-Maine Foods, which controls about 20% of the U.S. egg market, is public. The company reported gross profits up 600% in a late-December filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.