Will egg prices go back down soon?

AMMON, Idaho (KIFI) — If you buy eggs, you have likely noticed the high prices. Why are they so expensive nowadays? How are the prices affecting local restaurants? When will the prices go back to normal?

Local News 8 spoke with a local restaurant owner to find these answers.

The prices are spiking because of an outbreak of avian flu, leading to millions of chickens needing to be culled. It could be a while before the chicken numbers are replenished.

The high egg prices are affecting millions of people and restaurants that use eggs for their menu items.

Some restaurant chains like Waffle House are charging customers extra for each egg in their order.

“Restaurant business is tough as it is. And having to deal with these tremendous price increases all the time is really stressful,” said Jay Bungard, owner of Geraldine's Bake Shoppe and Deli.

Bungard says the increasing egg prices are not affecting his business too badly. At least not yet.

"We've got some good vendors that we use, and they've warned us that the prices are really going to start going up, so we placed orders to get extra in to hopefully get us through," Bungard said. "But you can only buy so much before it goes bad."

Bungard says egg prices will continue to rise for a while, but should eventually go down a little.

“But they'll never go back down to what they were,” he said.

Geraldine's might eventually have to raise its prices because of the egg situation, but Bungard said they would not change their recipes.