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 a scarcity of rooster provide on this nation, due to this fact a scarcity of egg provide, which is resulting in the scarcity”.
Leavitt’s assertion is partially correct in regards to the culling of tens of millions of chickens, however she omitted vital 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 complete flock of birds as soon as chicken 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 below 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 worth outlook mentioned egg costs may rise about 20 p.c extra this 12 months.
A spokesperson for Expana, an organization that tracks shopper costs, informed 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 have been euthanised or died of the virus.
As of January 29, chicken 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 constructive 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 informed 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, provides 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 chicken flu virus have little likelihood of survival; 90 p.c to one hundred pc p.c of them die, normally 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 employees 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 informed PolitiFact that depopulation or “stamping out” of sick birds is a longstanding coverage and pointed to a 2015 chicken flu outbreak in the course of the Obama administration.
Depopulation is the USDA’s major 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 massive 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 chicken flu response plan, up to date in Could 2017 throughout Trump’s first administration, incorporates coverage steering primarily based on classes from influenza outbreaks in the course of the Obama and first Trump administrations. It mentioned: “Speedy depopulation of contaminated poultry is important to halt virus transmission and have to be prioritised.”
Throughout a March 2017 chicken flu outbreak, a USDA report mentioned, “almost 253,000 birds have 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 normally takes place inside 48 hours of the virus’s affirmation.
The USDA pays the farmers for the killed birds.
“It’s in the very best curiosity of the farmer to get this accomplished shortly, because the USDA supplies 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”.
Through the Biden administration, greater than 100 million egg-laying chickens died from chicken flu or have been killed to cease the virus’ unfold. This led to an egg scarcity and better costs.
Depopulation is a longstanding follow to stop chicken flu from spreading, agriculture specialists mentioned. Authorities paperwork present depopulation was the USDA’s chicken flu technique throughout Trump’s first time period and in the course of the 2015 outbreak below Obama.
Leavitt’s assertion is partially correct however leaves out vital particulars and context. We fee it Half True.
