Seizures of eggs are rising at America’s borders
Thousands of Americans have (mostly unknowingly) gotten into trouble for trying to smuggle eggs into the country.
Tired of shelling out as much as $10 or more for a carton of eggs, some inflation-squeezed consumers are getting creative to find new places to source their breakfast staple: outside the US. For the first two months of 2025, US Customs and Border Protection forces have intercepted a whopping 3,254 egg products, up 116% from this time last year.
The office in San Diego, where many US-Mexico food interceptions are made, saw a 158% increase in egg seizures since the end of the last fiscal year, as egg prices just across the border dropped under $2 a dozen compared to ~$9 in California. Most people transport eggs without knowing that unofficial egg imports are prohibited, though, according to the CBP.
Eggsceptional
The uptick comes after US egg prices soared, with the bird flu outbreak affecting America’s laying hens into 2025. The cost of a dozen grade-A eggs has nearly doubled in the past year, reaching an average of $5.89 in February, compared with just shy of $3 one year earlier, according to data from the Labor Department, though prices have since dropped in the last two weeks.
