Pennsylvania thieves haul away precious loot: 100,000 eggs

ATLANTA – Pennsylvania State Police were hunting on Feb 5 for thieves who stole about 100,000 organic eggs from a wholesaler’s warehouse over the weekend, a haul worth more than US$40,000 (S$53,940) retail amid a

national shortage that has caused prices to surge

.

Pennsylvania State Trooper Megan Frazer, who is investigating the case, told Reuters that in her dozen years on the force, she has never before encountered an egg theft.

“The only thing close was 10 years ago when someone stole a trailer full of chickens,” she said.

“This is a major felony, given the value of what was taken,” she said of the theft that happened on Feb 1 in Greencastle, Pennsylvania, about 105km south-west of Harrisburg, the state capital.

Egg prices have soared more than 50 per cent since 2024 nationwide, according to a consumer price index report on Jan 31 from the US Bureau of Labour Statistics. Farmers are contending with a

bird flu outbreak

that has forced them to cull millions of hens to try to stop the disease’s spread.

More than 13 million hens have been slaughtered or lost since December, according to the US Agriculture Department’s latest egg markets overview.

The average cost of eggs was US$5.29 a dozen in late January, up from about US$3.50 around the same time in 2024, NBC reported, citing the NIQ consumer research group.

Some store shelves are bare and the ubiquitous breakfast restaurant Waffle House has imposed a 50-cent surcharge per egg, multiple media outlets have reported.

The stolen eggs were taken from a trailer at Pete and Gerry’s Organics warehouse shortly before 9pm on Feb 1, the police report said. A spokesperson for the company did not immediately respond to a request for comment. REUTERS