Eggs have never been a regular item on my grocery shopping list, but toward the end of last year, I began buying more of them because I was experimenting with various turkey meatloaf recipes. When I had extra time to cook breakfast, I prepared scrambled eggs using avocado oil as a base.

Due to the ongoing effects of the 2022 bird flu outbreak, I expected prices, which ranged from $3.65 to $4.15 for a dozen Grade A eggs, to remain a little higher in 2024. However, the costs of eggs are now rising to a point of significant concern as the U.S. Department of Agriculture is projecting a 20% increase this year.

PBS News reported that since 2022 more than 145 million chickens and turkeys had to be slaughtered by poultry farmers, with egg-laying chickens making up a sizable number of those. Consumers will feel the pinch in their wallets as demand for eggs surges while the bird flu disrupts supply.

Waffle House just made national headlines for imposing a 50-cents-per-egg surcharge. The price of the restaurant’s popular two-egg breakfast with a side of meat has increased to $11.85. Grocery store chains in some states are enforcing limits on egg purchases, and many shoppers are also seeing empty shelves in dairy departments, a dreadful scene reminiscent of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It’s not just soaring egg prices that have people worried about their food budgets. The potential effects of the 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada that President Donald Trump may impose would hit poor and working-class families hard. Trump has agreed to a one-month postponement of the tariffs, but if they are implemented, then vegetable and fresh produce imports that we receive from Mexico would be considerably higher.

According to University of California, Davis, data, Mexico provided 64% of our vegetable imports and 46% of our fresh fruit and nut imports in 2021. With Mexico being our leading supplier of these foods, prices would spike for items like tomatoes, avocados and strawberries. Eating strawberries and avocados would be considered a lavish indulgence for a low-income family who can barely afford food essentials. I watched a recent news report about a single mother who said she spends an average of $250 a week to feed her children. She was stressed about putting food on the table for the remainder of the year.

When thinking about families already having a difficult time with their grocery bills, higher prices will place many in danger of food insecurity. In September of last year, the USDA reported that 47 million Americans went hungry because they could not afford food to maintain a nourishing and well-balanced diet. This equated to 13.5% of households lacking sufficient funds to buy groceries, which increased from 12.8% in 2022. Arkansas, Texas and Mississippi were the leading states where people did not have enough to eat. In the Midwest, food banks have fewer resources to assist the increasing needs of families in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. In Ohio, my current state of residence, food insecurity is so severe that many families must choose between eating and purchasing other necessities in the city of Columbus. Just 12 food banks serve all 88 counties in Ohio, and they partner with local organizations and homeless shelters to provide hot meals and food items to those who depend on them.

As the soaring prices of eggs continue to make headlines, I’ve thought about those who may not be able to afford this once-basic staple for their meals, those who do not have the simple luxury of buying ingredients for a turkey meatloaf, as I do. As God has abundantly blessed me with food provision, I know that in 2025 I will have to give more to help those suffering, whether by volunteering at soup kitchens or taking canned goods to pantries. Proverbs 22:9 encourages us to have a kind eye and “(give) of (our) bread to the poor.” It is indeed a critical time to give “bread” to those in dire need throughout our nation.