Over the past few months, the poultry industry has been battling an alarming bird flu crisis. Bird flu, also known as avian influenza, is a viral illness that can cause respiratory distress, decreased energy and appetite, low egg production, misshapen eggs, and even sudden death in infected birds.
According to recent data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the disease has infected 80 commercial flocks, 43 backyard flocks, and over 22 million birds in the past 30 days across the U.S. The bird flu also killed 20 million egg-laying chickens nationwide last quarter.
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As a result of this deadly outbreak, consumers have been sounding the alarm on egg shortages at supermarkets across the country. Some grocers have even limited the amount of eggs customers can buy per visit.
Related: Waffle House will make customers pay extra for a major change
To make matters worse, egg prices have skyrocketed. According to recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average cost for a dozen eggs in the U.S. has spiked by 50% over the past year. Consumers have also recently taken to social media to show that some grocers are charging between $5 and $11 for a dozen eggs.
Waffle House makes a harsh decision amid bird flu outbreak
Now, the egg shortage is beginning to hurt restaurants. Waffle House is reportedly placing stickers on its menus at its locations that state that customers will be charged a “temporary surcharge” of $0.50 per egg due to the “nationwide rise in cost of eggs.” This increase translates to an extra $6 per egg dozen.
In a statement to TheStreet, Waffle House claimed that it implemented the surcharge to all menus on Feb. 3 and that the decision was the result of higher egg prices.
“The continuing egg shortage caused by HPAI (Bird Flu) has caused a dramatic increase in egg prices,” said Waffle House in the statement. “Customers and restaurants are being forced to make difficult decisions.”
The restaurant chain also said that it can’t predict how long the egg shortage will last but hopes it will be short-lived.
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“We are continuously monitoring egg prices and will adjust or remove the surcharge as market conditions allow,” said Waffle House.
Eggs are Waffle House’s most popular menu item as it serves about 272 million eggs per year, according to its website.
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In response to the surcharge, some consumers took to social media to express frustration over Waffle House’s extra fee for eggs. Some even claimed that they will be avoiding Waffle House as a result of the extra charge.
@WaffleHouse I understand raising prices for eggs due to shortage, but since Waffle House chose to raise its prices by $6 per dozen, we’ll be making ours at home. Good luck, and thanks for the memories.
— Donald Ray (@DonaldRay2002) February 4, 2025
Waffle House recently increased its menu prices
The move from Waffle House comes after the restaurant chain warned last year that it will be hiking its menu prices as a result of increasing the base pay for its workers by $3 per hour. By June 2026, the restaurant chain expects to increase wages by $5.25 per hour.
“We need to increase menu prices to pay for this journey, and we have more ability to do that in some places and less ability in others,” said Waffle House CEO Joe Rogers III in a video message to employees in June.
The CEO also claimed that some Waffle House locations in urban cities will have higher menu price hikes than those in suburban areas due to urban areas having higher costs of living.
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