Struggling to find eggs on supermarket shelves? This is why

Australians are struggling to find eggs stocked on supermarket shelves across the country due to a combination of high seasonal demand, industry changes and flow-on effects from last year's devastating avian influenza (bird flu).

Shoppers have taken to social media to complain about the lack of eggs, saying they are forced to visit several stores to get a hold of a carton.

"I drove to different Woolworths stores then different Coles stores Carlingford, West Ryde, Ermington, North Parramatta and no eggs, just a bunch of empty cartons," one user from Sydney posted to Reddit.

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"I've been struggling to get eggs from Woolies and Coles for two weeks," another wrote.

"We've been trying to get some for a few days already. Finally got some this afternoon, but from a Coles that's like 35 mins away from us and we just happened to be there at the right time," a third added.

Egg Farmers of Australia chief executive Melinda Hashimoto confirmed there is a national shortage.

"You might have noticed a lower supply of eggs in your local supermarket, recently. Some supermarkets have even rationed the number of cartons that you can buy in one purchase," she said.

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Hashimoto attributed this shortage to seasonal demand, changes to industry guidelines that require the phasing out of caged eggs and the bird flu.

"High seasonal demand for eggs used in cooking during the festive season, long summer holidays and back to school and post-holiday work lunches continues to place an increased demand for fresh Aussie eggs," she said.

There were 16 properties infected by the bird flu across New South Wales, Victoria and the Australian Capital Territory in 2024.

Poultry at the infected properties have been depopulated and disposed of.

In response, Coles and Woolworths introduced a limit on egg purchases.

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While human cases of the bird flu are rare, a child contracted the disease while in India and felt unwell upon return to Victoria.

Luckily, there haven't been any new detections since July.

Hashimoto said she expects egg production to increase this year with more supply soon to be available.

"The good news is that the majority of farms impacted by (avian influenza) have now restocked with new layer hens and egg production on these properties is expected to gradually return to normal over the next six months," she said.

9news.com.au has contacted Coles, Woolworths and Aldi for comment.

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