News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Mike McKay, an employee of Save-a-Lot in Alpena, puts a carton of eggs on the shelf while at work on Monday. The price of eggs has skyrocketed due to a new state law and the impact the bird flu has had in the state.

ALPENA — A new Michigan law, coupled with the avian flu and inflation, has caused the price of eggs to skyrocket in the state, and signs of an egg shortage are beginning to come into focus.

In 2019, the state legislature passed a law that large egg producing companies can only sell eggs from hens that live in a cage-free environment. Eggs produced in a caged facility can not be sold in mass.

A cage-free label on a carton of eggs means they have been laid by hens that are able to roam vertically and horizontally in indoor houses, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s website.

Republicans held control of both the House and State Senate when the bill was passed and then signed by Democrat Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was out of the country at the time.

On Monday, a dozen eggs were $4.99 at Save-a-Lot and $5.42 at Walmart. A year ago, a dozen eggs were on average about $2 a dozen and sometimes less locally.

The state government gave large egg suppliers, who have 3,000 or more hens, five years to prepare for the transition. These large egg facilities are the ones who typically sell to most grocery and big-box stores.

Small-scale farms, with less than 3,000 birds, are exempt from the law.

State Rep. Cam Cavitt, R-Cheboygan, who was not in his current seat in 2019, said his office has been contacted often about the issue. He said he hopes some changes to the law can be made because it puts another burden on people’s finances.

“Oh, we’re really hearing a lot about it and it needs to be fixed,” Cavitt said. “This just doesn’t make any sense.”

Besides the high prices, a shortage of eggs and chicken may also be in the cards, Cavitt said.

The avian flu, also referred to as bird flu, has caused chicken and egg producers to euthanize 133.5 million birds nationwide and about $7 million in Michigan over the last 12 months. If there are more cases of bird flu, that total will grow and prices could climb even higher, Cavitt said.

A bird flu breakout in Ionia County led to nearly 6.5 million dead chickens, U.S. Department of Agriculture data shows.

An additional 344,000 turkeys were also culled in Michigan because of the bird flu.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported almost 1,400 outbreaks of bird flu in poultry flocks across all 50 states.

If a farm sick bird is diagnosed with the bird flu, the entire flock is culled, to help control the spread of the virus.

Like eggs, chicken was one of the most affordable types of meat for people. Cavitt said many low-income families depended on eggs and chicken to feed their families reasonably. He said the more chickens that are killed because of the bird flu, prices of chicken will climb and it could become harder to find in supermarkets.

“These are things that used to be affordable, but they aren’t or won’t be anymore,” he said. “A shortage and higher prices for chicken is coming.”

The news could get worse.

As of Dec. 30, there were 30 confirmed infections in dairy cows in large milking facilities. If there is a large spread of the bird disease, and cattle need to be culled, other prices and availability could be impacted too.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@TheAlpenaNews.com. Follow him on X @ss_alpenanews.com.