Popular dollar store Dollar Tree is taking a break from selling eggs, which have become too expensive for them to stock.
With the cost of eggs skyrocketing in 2022 and into 2023, for both consumers and stores, Dollar Tree has decided to stop selling eggs at its roughly 8,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada, according to reports. A spokesperson for the chain reportedly said the stores likely won’t sell eggs again until at least later this fall, when egg prices are hopefully “more in line with historical levels.”
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Dollar Tree operates more than 8,000 Family Dollar stores in the U.S., which carry goods at higher prices than Dollar Tree. Eggs will still be sold at Family Dollar, officials said.
The decision to stop selling eggs is expected to disrupt spring holidays like Easter and Passover, during which eggs are popular commodities. The decision will also affect the rising number of consumers who are turning to dollar stores to skirt increasingly expensive grocery costs.
Due to a number of factors, including a bird flu outbreak and hikes in the price of feed, fuel and labor, the cost of the staple ingredient in American households rose 60% in the span of a year. A carton of a dozen grade A eggs cost $4.25 on average at the end of 2022, according to the consumer price index. In December 2021, a carton cost $1.79 -- that’s a 138% increase in one year.
The cost of eggs reached its peak for U.S. consumers in January, with a dozen large eggs costing an average of $5.27 in the Northeast, $4.78 in the South, and $4.44 in the Midwest -- though some areas have seen prices even higher. At one point, a carton of eggs cost $18 in New York City during the price surge, according to reports.
Egg prices started to drop in February, consumer price index data shows. The average cost per carton was $3.75 in the Midwest in February.
You can track egg prices in our interactive graph below.
The move to eliminate eggs -- temporarily, at least -- isn’t the only move Dollar Tree has made to account for ongoing inflation and production issues that began during the pandemic. In 2021, stores raised their prices from $1 per most items to $1.25.