USDA offers relief from record-high egg prices, but beware of a new round of sticker shock

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins offered some "good news" to shoppers seeking relief from record-high egg prices, telling FOX Business on Tuesday that prices per dozen have dipped by $1.85 on average.

"We believe that… the market has reacted to our plan that we rolled out on Feb. 26th," Rollins said on "Mornings with Maria," referencing a five-prong approach the Trump administration unveiled last month to "immediately" reduce money spent on the dietary staple.

Rollins shared key details of the plan on the Fox News Channel at the time, telling "America's Newsroom" co-host Dana Perino that its steps involved "short-term" imports, deregulation, investments in biosecurity, repopulating fowl and investing in vaccines and therapeutic research.

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"We've got a long way to go in combating the Avian bird flu. It's not something that we can do overnight. It is a long-term effort," she added on Tuesday.

But, with Easter just around the corner, Rollins acknowledged the positive change is likely short-lived and holiday demand could deliver another spell of sticker shock to already fatigued consumers.

"We're moving into the highest price egg season without Avian bird flu, and that's because Easter is right around the corner," she explained. 

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She assured, however, that the administration is focused on fixing the problem.

"We are on it. We have a major plan… it's got five different points, but the piece of… good news is that the price of eggs seem to be coming down, and $1.85 per carton is not insignificant, but we've got a long way to go," said Rollins.

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