Cracking the Cost: Why Local Eggs Are Worth It
No eggs in the grocery store? Price tags of $6, $8 and $10 for a dozen at supermarkets? A 50-cent-per-egg surcharge for egg dishes at Waffle House? If there were ever a time to buy eggs at your local farmers market or farmstand, this is it.
Egg prices are skyrocketing and there’s no end in sight. Much of the blame lies with the large-scale outbreaks of bird flu affecting egg-laying hens at industrial producers across the U.S. The H5N1 virus can wipe out an entire flock, and it takes time for suppliers to build up their flocks. Meanwhile, avian flu continues to spread.
Supermarkets have also typically priced eggs low to bring in customers. Now, they are pricing them higher – you’ll pay at least $6 for a dozen factory-farm large eggs at Publix. Because of limited availability, customers may be asked to limit their egg purchases.
Time to turn to South Florida’s small farms and markets. At the Urban Oasis Project farmers markets, you’ll pay $8-10 a dozen for eggs from Redland farms, says Art Friedrich. These eggs come from local farms rather than factories where hens are kept in cages in buildings with no sunlight. His egg price hasn’t changed in years, says Friedrich, despite the high costs of raising chickens.
“It’s such an intensive business and so hard to do right and so hard to get people to pay the value of homegrown,” he says. “They're so used to being flooded with mass-production eggs. It's really hard to be mid-scale.”
Loss Leader
“Eggs should cost more,” says tropical fruit expert Dr. Richard Campbell, who raises backyard chickens. “Factory egg prices have long been a loss leader for supermarkets. Meanwhile, actory farms are absolutely a breeding ground for avian flu and conducive to epidemics, he says. “When you have chickens in cages, they can’t move, and disease comes in like wildfire. Free-range chickens are more resilient, have a natural resistance to disease and eat a varied diet,” he says.
At Empower Farms in south Miami-Dade, their flock of 400 hens spends the day pecking around looking for bugs, taking dust baths and eating leftover produce, says farm director Nicolas Miller. At night, they return to their coop for protection from predators, which include Burmese pythons, coyotes, raccoons and hawks. Fice roosters and six ducks are on hand to raise the alarm. These clucking, disease-free hens provide eggs for their CSA customers.
Egg production has been lower for the past few months, Miller says, because it’s molting season. “They lay fewer eggs because they’ve been losing feathers and growing new ones,” he says, something customers – who are used to finding whatever they want when they want it – should be aware of. Empower Farms has enough eggs now to supply their CSA customers and their retailers – Gaucho Ranch in Little River, Fruits N Cahoots in Davie and Key to Health on Key Biscayne. By summer, they’ll be able to offer their egg and tropical fruit shares online.
To small farmers, eggs are a rewarding part of farm life, but they’re not a money-maker. Campbell, known for growing rare cultivars of mangos, raises chickens in his family grove. When his three sons were young, they sold eggs as a way for the kids to make a little spending money. Campbell says the flavor of fresh eggs is superior, particularly noticeable when you hard-boil them. “Factory egg yolks taste like cardboard. Farm egg yolks are creamy and rich.”
Local egg aficionados have long been willing to pay the price for their taste. Twenty years ago, farm eggs went for $5 a half-dozen at Bee Heaven Farm. Founder Margie Pikarsky, one of the first organic farmers in South Florida, offered egg shares in her CSA in the early 2000s. Her eggs were consistently rated among the top 20 in the country by the Cornucopia Institute. Today, she still raises some chickens in her Redland farm.
“The price of eggs has always been artificially low,” she says. Now that the difference in the price of local eggs and their grocery-store counterparts is not so great, it’s a great time to buy from the local producer. “Your money stays in the community and you’re supporting the local economy,” she says.
Where to Find Local Eggs
Check your friendly farmers market. Supplies are limited at the moment, so shop early or call first to make sure they're available..
Urban Oasis Project: Farmers markets at Legion Park farmers markets, Saturday and Vizcaya Village, Sunday
Empower Farms is only selling eggs to their CSA customers, but check their website to sign up for summer egg shares.
Fruits N Cahoots, Davie
Gaucho Ranch, Little River
Redland Market Village, Homestead
Regener8, Homestead
Robert Is Here, Florida City
Tinez Farms, Redland
Redland Growers Market
