Re:Record-Breaking Egg Profits Prompt Accusation of Price Go...
by csb6 on Wednesday February 22, 2023 @01:56PM
(#34900774)
> This feels to me like a case where the market should sort it out - I would think there would be enough competition in the egg industry that it should be difficult to gouge.
If all of the large producers are in on it, then the market would not be able to sort itself out. It would be a trust situation.
As the article states, competition is decreasing due to acquisitions by egg producers.
Re:Record-Breaking Egg Profits Prompt Accusation of Price Go...
by jeffwask on Wednesday February 22, 2023 @02:02PM
(#34900879)
Everything in the US is a monopoly now, everything.
Market correction requires a free and open market which doesn't exist.
Re:Record-Breaking Egg Profits Prompt Accusation of Price Go...
by bsder on Wednesday February 22, 2023 @02:51PM
(#34901619)
> This feels to me like a case where the market should sort it out - I would think there would be enough competition in the egg industry that it should be difficult to gouge.
Nope. Always Late Inventory(tm) means that no upstream supplier has any excess capacity.
So, even if you wanted to drop prices a bit and gain some customers, you can't. Your upstream supplier can't give you 10% more eggs because they are capacity constrained as well. Lather, rinse, repeat at every level.
The avian flu definitely got rid of some of that pricing pressure, but for what it's worth, the issue seems to be resolving itself. Wholesale egg prices are down 50% from their peak. Anecdotally, I've been able to get a dozen eggs at Sprouts for $3.25-3.50 for about a month (this is in San Diego, so something like $2.49-2.99 was normal pre-pandemic and $5.99 with largely empty shelves was normal two months ago).