In advance of the National Restaurant Association’s (NRA) annual Chicago exhibition, NRA held a two-day Supply Chain Expert Exchange Spring Conference. And because eggs and egg products are important to restaurant operators, NRA invited the American Egg Board (AEB) to update attendees about Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) and its impact on egg supplies.

There to present was Nate Hedtke, AEB’s vice president, Innovation & Customer Engagement.

Here is a summary of Hedtke’s comments on several subjects, including…  

… Impact

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI or bird flu) has been devastating to farmers and U.S. egg production. As of May industry has lost more than 132 million egg-laying hens since 2022, including 40 million in 2024 and over 33 million so far, in 2025.

… Update

*Short-term relief has helped to stabilize the market with wholesale shell egg prices dropping by more than 50% and egg products, such as liquid and frozen, falling more than 30%. Fortunately, there have been limited significant HPAI outbreaks on egg farms since March.

*Consumer demand for eggs has softened – after increasing 4.8% in 2024 and growing for 23 consecutive four-week periods, shell egg volume in retail started to slow in February and has remained softer on a year-over-year basis.

*Imports of eggs increased significantly surging to nearly 150 million shell egg equivalents imported per month in each February and March.

*A sustained period with limited or no outbreaks is critical to expediting recovery of egg production and supply with fully recovery not expected until sometime in 2026, again, assuming no significant outbreaks occur.

… Actions Taken

*America’s egg farmers continue to fight bird flu with all their resources and biosecurity remains the number one defense against the virus. Egg armers have invested significantly in stringent and comprehensive biosecurity measures, but this isn’t foolproof.

In closing, Hedtke expressed AEB’s gratitude for USDA’s support, which has included a five-point plan. He outlined progress in each of the plan areas, including …

*Strengthen Biosecurity Measures – Two voluntary biosecurity assessments are available and egg farms have been participating since March. One assessment focuses on wildlife risk mitigation and the other addresses general biosecurity improvements

*Use Imports to Stabilize Supply – As mentioned, the inflow of egg imports has helped reduce supply risk.

*Explore Pathways Towards Vaccines and Therapeutics – AEB and United Egg Producers convened an HPAI Vaccination Working Group and have shared recommendations for a vaccine protocol and implementation plan with the USDA. Vaccination, along with strong biosecurity is a smart next step to protect flocks and stabilize supply.

AEB is a resource to help foodservice operators and manufacturer-suppliers through challenging times. 

“We have tools to help customers communicate the facts about bird flu, egg supply and prices with their guests,” said Hedtke. “We also supply market forecasting of ongoing supply and demand data, and technical support to provide guidance on egg functionality, ingredients and other needs.”