Trump White House blames high egg costs on Biden's 'mass killing' of chickens

President Donald Trump pledged to bring down grocery prices on "Day One," but instead, egg prices have soared.

Press secretary Karoline Leavitt blamed President Joe Biden, who left office on Jan. 20, for the high cost of eggs. She complained that prices increased under the previous administration and ignored the dramatic increase since Trump's swearing-in last week.

The current spike, Leavitt said, came after "the Biden administration and the Department of Agriculture directed the mass killing of more than 100 million chickens, which has led to a lack of chicken supply in this country. Therefore, lack of egg supply, which is leading to the shortage."

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A bird flu outbreak in 2022 left prices of poultry and eggs steadily increasing. Still, Trump pledged to fix the problem throughout the 2024 campaign.

"The U.S. Department of Agriculture has spent at least $1.14 billion compensating farmers for the birds they have had to kill. A similar number wasn’t immediately available for how much has been spent to aid dairies," The Associated Press reported Monday.

The mortality rate for birds infected with bird flu "can cause disease that affects internal organs as high 90% or even 100% in chickens, often within 48 hours," the Center for Disease Control said.

Updated information on the bird flu outbreak will cease as the Trump administration pauses "external communications, such as regular scientific reports, updates to websites and health advisories," CNN reported.

Leavitt said she "laid out the plethora of ways that President Trump has addressed saving costs for the American people over the past week." Egg prices have not yet been addressed, however.

She said there is a need for Trump's Department of Agriculture secretary to be confirmed to address the matter. It's unclear whether birds with the flu will be slaughtered as was the practice previously.

The first outbreak of a novel bird flu strain was reported at a California poultry farm last week, leading to the death of 119,000 birds, said a Monday report.

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