President Donald Trump promised to decrease costs for groceries, together with eggs. However one crack in his plan is that egg costs haven’t fallen since he took workplace on January 20.
White Home press secretary Karoline Leavitt, in her first on-camera information briefing on January 28, blamed that on former President Joe Biden’s “inflationary insurance policies”.
Leavitt mentioned the Biden administration and the US Agriculture Division “directed the mass killing of greater than 100 million chickens, which has led to an absence of rooster provide on this nation, subsequently an absence of egg provide, which is resulting in the scarcity”.
Leavitt’s assertion is partially correct in regards to the culling of hundreds of thousands of chickens, however she omitted essential particulars and context about why that occurred.
First, the chickens were killed to prevent the spread of the extremely pathogenic avian influenza, or bird flu.
Second, it’s been longstanding USDA coverage to cull a whole flock of birds as soon as chook flu has been detected, together with throughout Trump’s first administration.
White Home deputy press secretary Anna Kelly referred PolitiFact again to Leavitt’s information briefing feedback.
Egg costs rose beneath Biden – from $1.60 per dozen in February 2021 to $4.10 in December 2024 (his first and final full months in workplace), Bureau of Labor Statistics knowledge reveals. The Agriculture Division’s January meals value outlook mentioned egg costs might rise about 20 % extra this 12 months.
A spokesperson for Expana, an organization that tracks client costs, instructed information outlet Axios {that a} dozen giant eggs prices greater than $7 in some US areas.
Since February 8, 2022, when the virus was detected in a business flock, greater than 147 million birds, together with chickens, turkeys, geese and geese, have died, the USDA mentioned.
USDA knowledge reveals 108 million egg-laying chickens died since 2022, together with 13 million in 2025. It’s not clear what number of had been euthanised or died of the virus.
As of January 29, chook flu has additionally been detected in dairy cattle, affecting 944 herds in 16 states, US Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention knowledge reveals. People have additionally examined optimistic for the virus – 67 confirmed circumstances have been reported within the US and one particular person has died, the CDC mentioned.
Why are flocks culled?
Consultants instructed PolitiFact the birds are culled to cease the virus from spreading. This protects not solely close by farms and the poultry trade, however public well being. A 2002 federal regulation, the Animal Well being Safety Act, offers the USDA’s Animal and Plant Well being Inspection Service authority to depopulate herds and flocks to cease the illness’s unfold.
“If the birds are useless, the virus dies together with them,” Russ Daly, a veterinarian for the South Dakota Division of Well being and a South Dakota State College professor, mentioned.
Chickens that contract the chook flu virus have little likelihood of survival; 90 % to one hundred pc % of them die, often inside 48 hours, the CDC mentioned.
Ready for the chickens to die naturally permits extra viral load into the environment, making it extra harmful for the farm staff and different individuals who are available contact with the farm, Jada Thompson, a College of Arkansas agricultural economics and agribusiness affiliate professor, mentioned.
Is that this coverage new?
A number of veterinary professors instructed PolitiFact that depopulation or “stamping out” of sick birds is a longstanding coverage and pointed to a 2015 chook flu outbreak through the Obama administration.
Depopulation is the USDA’s main management and eradication technique for avian influenza, Yuko Sato, a veterinarian and Iowa State College affiliate professor, mentioned.
“This newest outbreak is devastating due to the big numbers of premises concerned since 2022,” Carol Cardona, a College of Minnesota veterinary professor and chair of avian well being, mentioned. “However the rule has been there for a really very long time now.”
A 2016 USDA report reveals that depopulation in 2015 resulted in 50 million birds being killed.
A USDA chook flu response plan, up to date in Could 2017 throughout Trump’s first administration, incorporates coverage steerage based mostly on classes from influenza outbreaks through the Obama and first Trump administrations. It mentioned: “Fast depopulation of contaminated poultry is important to halt virus transmission and should be prioritised.”
Throughout a March 2017 chook flu outbreak, a USDA report mentioned, “almost 253,000 birds had been depopulated.”
How does depopulation work?
The USDA encourages farmers who discover indicators of sickness to contact the USDA or their state veterinarian. Samples taken from the animals are examined and the USDA confirms circumstances; depopulation often takes place inside 48 hours of the virus’s affirmation.
The USDA pays the farmers for the killed birds.
“It’s in the most effective curiosity of the farmer to get this performed shortly, because the USDA offers indemnity funds for the euthanised birds, however not those that die naturally,” Daly mentioned.
Our ruling
Leavitt mentioned there’s an egg scarcity as a result of the Biden administration “directed the mass killing of greater than 100 million chickens”.
Throughout the Biden administration, greater than 100 million egg-laying chickens died from chook flu or had been killed to cease the virus’ unfold. This led to an egg scarcity and better costs.
Depopulation is a longstanding observe to stop chook flu from spreading, agriculture specialists mentioned. Authorities paperwork present depopulation was the USDA’s chook flu technique throughout Trump’s first time period and through the 2015 outbreak beneath Obama.
Leavitt’s assertion is partially correct however leaves out essential particulars and context. We price it Half True.
