Supporters praise ‘Made-in-Canada system’

Egg prices remain stable while other countries see surge

Canada’s egg industry appears to be quietly sidestepping widespread shortages and wildly spiking prices affecting other countries, and some say supply management is to thank.

The system, which controls the supply, import and farm price of eggs, poultry and dairy, is often criticized as benefitting Canadian farmers at the expense of consumers. Critics blame supply management whenever prices of eggs and milk in Canada surpass those south of the border.

But as disease, climate change and geopolitical unrest threaten global food supplies, supporters say the upside of supply management is increasingly apparent.

“We have a made-in-Canada system that has never been more critical to food security in Canada,” said University of Waterloo history professor Bruce Muirhead, a former research chair for Egg Farmers of Canada. “It’s keeping family farms alive and eggs on store shelves at a time when we’re seeing shortages around the world.”

Statistics Canada said egg prices climbed 16.5 per cent year over year in December, making a dozen eggs that cost about $3.25 last year now $3.75.

While it’s a significant increase, it’s a fraction of the spiralling costs recorded in other countries.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said egg prices were up 59.9 per cent in December compared with a year earlier.

In states like Arizona, California, Nevada and Florida, the cost of a carton of eggs exceeded $6 (U.S.) a dozen or about $8 Canadian in recent weeks. Stores in some regions have even rationed eggs to avoid empty shelves amid supply chain issues and possible shortages.

In the United Kingdom, egg prices in December were up 28.9 per cent year over year, the U.K.’s Office for National Statistics reported.

But critics say prices in Canada haven’t soared as drastically as in other countries for the simple reason that prices were already high to begin with.

Provincial egg marketing boards have indicated that prices in Canada are starting to come down.

Egg Farmers of Ontario, for example, dropped the price farmers receive for a dozen eggs by 14 cents as of Jan. 29. It’s unclear whether processors and retailers will pass along those savings to consumers, though egg prices in some stores appear to have lowered by a few cents in recent days.