Trump’s Tariffs Could Derail Plan to Reduce Egg Prices, Warns Agriculture Secretary Rollins

In a turn of events, Donald Trump’s resolution to deflate egg prices across the U.S might have taken a hit due to his penchant for tariffs.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins had announced two weeks ago that the Trump administration had a plan up its sleeve to combat the rising egg prices. The strategy involved importing millions of eggs primarily from Turkey and South Korea to bump up supply and subsequently reduce prices.

Why Are Egg Prices Soaring?

Concerns of avian flu have led to the culling of millions of chickens, causing a dearth of domestically produced eggs and hence, a surge in prices. However, the recently imposed tariffs could add a twist to this tale.

With the tariffs announced this week, the cost of eggs might see another hike just as prices were beginning to stabilize. The tariffs on Turkey have increased from a meager 1% to 10%, while those on South Korean products have jumped from 4% to a whopping 26%.

Chicken Populations Start to Recover

While chicken populations are gradually bouncing back from the mass culling, Rollins admitted last month that it might take a couple more months before the industry is back on its feet.

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a projection on March 25, predicting that egg prices would see a 57.6% increase this year.
• Even though egg prices have declined in recent weeks, the wholesale prices are still 60% higher now compared to the same period last year, averaging $3 per dozen.

Impact of Tariffs

In an interview with Fox News, Rollins acknowledged that the tariffs might keep egg prices high. “I’m not going to sit here and say, ‘Oh, everything’s going to be perfect and the prices are going to come down tomorrow,’ because this is an uncertain time,” Rollins stated.

Records show that the U.S. imported more than 1.6 million dozen consumer-grade chicken eggs in January and February alone. With the new tariffs, it remains to be seen how this will impact egg prices and the strategies devised by the Trump administration to control them.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com