Egg prices are on the rise across the retailers with a raft of increases hitting shelves as commodity price pressures take hold.
Analysis by The Grocer of Assosia data [52 w/e 2 November 2026] showed that lines have increased by as much as 19.2% since 5 October.
A fifth of the 134 egg lines available in stores experienced inflation in the last month with seven SKUs rising by more than 10%.
Although the egg category has proven resilient in the face of inflation, having edged up only 2.9% year-on-year on average, more than a third of that (1.1%) has come in the last month.
The Grocer understands that heavy commodity pricing increases are to blame for the increase in price on shelf.
As reported by The Grocer, farm costs are rising at more than twice the rate of general inflation. In the year to September, agricultural input inflation was at 7.8%, the highest rate since early 2023 and more than double consumer price index inflation, which stood at 3.5% in September.
However, for egg producers, the key challenge on farms has been rising feed costs, with compound feed prices for laying hens climbing by around 5% to 10% in the second half of the year, according to ADAS technical director - livestock agriculture and land management Jason Gittins.
“Feed is the biggest single cost for egg producers and for the free-range egg sector – which is the important one for retailers – this has meant a typical cost increase of around £25 per tonne,” he continued. “Each £5 per tonne increase in feed costs adds around a penny to the cost of producing a dozen eggs.”
He also said egg producers were “paying more now for point-of-lay pullets” – young hens almost ready to lay eggs.
“Purchase prices are currently reported to be around 40p per bird higher than they were six months ago,” Gittins added. “Short term cost reductions appear unlikely.”
“We know household budgets are under pressure, so we work hard to balance great value with fair pay for our farmers and high welfare standards,” a Waitrose spokesperson told The Grocer. “While prices on a small number of eggs have changed, we continue to invest heavily across our broader range.”
They continued: “Eggs are included in our Essentials range – still the largest value range of any UK supermarket – and the investment we have made in New Lower Prices gives our customers choice while helping to keep everyday essentials more affordable.”
Tesco and Morrisons were approached for comment.
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