US imports eggs from South Korea, Türkiye to cool prices

Speaking in Washington, Rollins said imports from Türkiye and South Korea had begun, and the Trump administration was also negotiating with other countries to temporarily import eggs.

US increases egg imports to cool prices. Photo: usda.gov

“We're talking hundreds of millions of eggs in the short term,” Secretary Rollins stressed.

Egg prices in the US have skyrocketed due to multiple outbreaks of bird flu, forcing farmers to cull at least 30 million birds, severely reducing supplies.

Eggs also became a political issue during last year's presidential election, when Mr Trump capitalised on voter discontent over rising prices under the previous administration of Joe Biden.

After his re-election in January 2025, Mr. Trump tasked Ms. Rollins with boosting supplies and driving down egg prices. Since then, several countries have received U.S. interest. The Polish and Lithuanian poultry associations said they had been approached by U.S. diplomats seeking egg supplies.

“Many countries are also experiencing egg shortages. The key question is what price the US will offer,” Katarzyna Gawronska, director of the Polish Poultry and Feed Chamber of Commerce, recently commented.

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently said wholesale egg prices have dropped nearly 50% since late February, signaling that retail prices may soon cool.

“This downward trend demonstrates that USDA’s approach is working,” the agency said.

Egg imports will end when domestic poultry farms can increase production enough to meet demand, Rollins said.

Cao Phong (according to CNA, CNN)