IN RESPONSE: Don’t blame cage-free law for egg shortage

As a Nevada farmer, I understand the frustrations of consumers facing limited availability and higher prices on certain foods, especially eggs. But some corporate lobbyists right now are trying to exploit this issue by blaming Nevada’s common-sense animal cruelty and safety standards for eggs.

Blaming Nevada’s cage-free law for the current egg shortage and price volatility is misleading (Review-Journal editorial, Jan. 25). The culprit behind supply issues is the avian flu. Calls to undermine the cage-free law are shortsighted and wouldn’t solve the problem. Instead, the state should look at other causes of shortages or high prices, such as why certain retailers are charging dramatically more for eggs in different locations across our state.

There are several reasons why Nevada’s cage-free egg law exists. In 2021, with bipartisan support, Nevada legislators passed a bill phasing out the use of cages in egg production. It also required that, after a reasonable phase-in time, eggs sold in Nevada must come from cage-free facilities. The standards in this law reflect egg producers’ own guidelines and went into effect more than a year ago.

Cramming hens into tiny cages so small they can barely move is inhumane and increases the risk of salmonella, which can be deadly. The Center for Food Safety has endorsed cage-free egg production as a safer alternative because of the disease risks associated with caging hens.

Yet a small faction of retailers are politicizing the deadly outbreak of avian flu to push their agenda. They’ve called for caged eggs to be allowed into the Nevada market. But this wouldn’t fix the volatility in the egg market caused by avian flu.

Since early 2022, more than 130 million birds have been killed nationwide due to avian flu, including 40 million egg-laying hens in 2024 alone. That’s why we’re seeing changes in the egg market. Industry experts back this up. Bernt Nelson, an economist at the American Farm Bureau Federation, confirms: “Bird flu infections are by far the biggest factor impacting egg prices.”

Opening the Nevada market to cage eggs would not solve the problem of avian flu. Moreover, allowing cage eggs in our market would put Nevadans at risk because of the higher rates of salmonella.

Not only would weakening Nevada’s cage-free standards hurt Nevada consumers, it would be detrimental to farmers. Egg producers supplying Nevada have invested millions to comply with our cage-free standards. Rolling back standards wouldn’t create more eggs — it would just hurt farmers who have worked hard to meet these requirements. Also, because the avian flu-driven egg shortages are nationwide, there wouldn’t be enough caged eggs available to ease some of the market issues.

Rather than advocating for a policy that would hurt families, farmers and animal welfare, we should focus on investigating what’s really causing high prices at the supermarket. For example, the New York attorney general has spotlighted price gouging of eggs by grocery stores. We should explore whether the same is being done in our state.

The last thing we need is reactionary policy changes that won’t fix the real issue. Allowing inhumane and potentially unsafe cage eggs into our marketplace won’t solve the egg shortage. Let’s keep our focus on real solutions instead of scapegoating a policy that protects both consumers and animals.

Lorraine Fitzhugh owns VitalBeeBuds, which sells pollinator perennial flowers and shrubs. She writes from Gardnerville.