Another beloved restaurant chain is to add a surcharge for on egg-based dishes because of America’s national egg shortage.
Denny’s, a household name in the world of pancakes, hash browns, and of course, eggs, has announced it will be implementing the surcharge at select locations across the country.
It comes amid a worsening avian flu outbreak that has decimated poultry farms and sent egg prices soaring, leaving grocery store shelves bare and restaurant chains scrambling for solutions.
Denny’s, which boasts more than 1,300 locations nationwide, is the latest in a string of eateries to take drastic measures in response to the crisis.
‘Due to the nationwide egg shortage and increased cost of eggs, some of our restaurant locations will need to temporarily add a surcharge to every meal that includes eggs,’ the South Carolina-based chain said in a statement.
Earlier this month, America’s largest breakfast chain, Waffle House, with more than 2,000 locations across 25 states announced it had implemented a 50 cent per egg surcharge across all of its menus.
‘While we hope these price fluctuations will be short-lived, we cannot predict how long this shortage will last,’ Waffle House stated. ‘We are continuously monitoring egg prices and will adjust or remove the surcharge as market conditions allow.’
Denny’s on the other hand has remained vague on the specifics, failing to provide details about how much the surcharge would be or which locations will be affected.
Denny’s, a household name in the world of pancakes, hash browns, and of course, eggs, has announced it will be implementing the surcharge at select locations across the country
The beloved restaurant chain is to add a surcharge for on egg-based dishes because of America’s national egg shortage
Egg producers are charging more to wholesalers, retailers are limiting how much shoppers can buy and restaurant menu prices are up as a result
Instead, the company said the decision would be handled ‘market-by-market, and restaurant-by-restaurant due to the regional impacts of the egg shortage.’
The root of the crisis is down to the spread of H5N1 bird flu, which has led to the culling of millions of egg-laying hens across the country.
The loss of poultry stock has sent shockwaves through the supply chain, resulting in record-breaking prices for eggs and a scramble by restaurant chains to keep their breakfast offerings viable.
The egg shortage has rippled beyond restaurant menus and affected grocery stores nationwide.
Eggs are missing from grocery shelves nationwide, and shoppers able to snag a dozen are facing sticker shock for the breakfast staple making a once-affordable staple a luxury item for some people.
Since November, a surge of infections of the lethal flu in Iowa and Ohio, the two biggest egg-producing states, has fueled the shortage.
As a result, egg producers are charging more to wholesalers, retailers are limiting how much shoppers can buy and restaurant menu prices are up.
The U.S. is importing tons of eggs from Turkey to bolster supplies.
Earlier this month, Waffle House, with more than 2,000 locations across 25 states, announced it had implemented a 50 cent per egg surcharge across all of its menus
The breakfast giant known for its affordable meals described the price increase as a ‘temporary targeted surcharge’ its execs made rather than increasing prices across the board
Losses of flocks created a supply shock that has left fewer eggs available for shoppers, restaurants and food companies that make products containing eggs.
It takes months for farms to return to full production after an outbreak because they need to dispose of dead chickens, clean infected barns and bring in new birds to lay eggs.
President Donald Trump recently weighed in on the crisis, pinning the blame on the Biden administration – but he has vowed to tackle the problem through Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.
‘I’m hearing so much about eggs; you’ll figure it out and you’ve got to figure something out fast, but we inherited all of the problems,’ Trump said while speaking to Rollins.
Average retail prices in January reached a record $4.95 per dozen, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said. That was up 96 percent from a year earlier and 239 percent from five years ago.
Consumers have faced ever bigger sticker shock, with prices climbing to $8 or even $10 per dozen in major cities like Chicago.