Lee Hyo-jin covers the Bank of Korea, the banking industry and broader financial news. Her previous beats include foreign affairs, North Korea and general reporting on Korean society.
Koreans feel pinch from rising egg prices
A notice informing customers that eggs are sold out is displayed at a supermarket in Seoul, Sunday, as egg prices continue to rise amid limited supplies. Yonhap
By Lee Hyo-jin
Park, a woman in her 50s living in Seoul's Yangcheon District, said she recently scaled back her egg purchases as prices continue to climb.
"When I went grocery shopping at Costco last weekend, customers were limited to two cartons per person, and there were barely any left on the shelves," she said. "I originally planned to buy two cartons for my family of five, but the prices had risen so much that I ended up buying just one."
Consumers across Korea are increasingly feeling the impact of soaring egg prices and tightening supplies. Posts on online communities point to empty egg shelves at major discount stores and shortages at online grocery platforms such as Coupang and Kurly.
According to data from the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp., the average retail price of a 30-egg carton of large eggs stood at 7,413 won as of Saturday, up 8.6 percent from March.
By region, Gyeonggi Province recorded the highest average price at 7,957 won per carton, nearing the 8,000 won ($5) mark.
The sharp rise in prices has largely been attributed to outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza last winter. The mass culling of laying hens to contain the virus has tightened supplies across the market.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs estimated daily egg production at 46.92 million in May, down 3.6 percent from a year earlier.
Supply constraints are expected to persist for some time, as it takes roughly six months for newly hatched chicks to mature into egg-laying hens, officials said.
Retailers have stepped up efforts to cope with the supply crunch. Major discount store chains such as E-Mart and Lotte Mart have imposed a limit of one 30-egg carton per customer on certain products eligible for government discount support through July 10.
The government is also taking steps to stabilize supplies.
Since January, the government has imported 7.87 million fresh eggs from the United States and Thailand, and plans to bring in an additional 2.24 million eggs by the end of June, according to the agriculture ministry.
The government has also extended a subsidy program under which consumers receive a 1,500 won discount per carton of eggs through Aug. 1.