Cortez Masto takes aim at egg prices, price gouging

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., sent a letter Thursday morning urging the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to take action on rising egg prices and protect Nevadans from potential price gouging.

“As grocery prices for essential items continue to rise, I echo recent calls for the Biden Administration to examine the markets and investigate any potential unlawful price manipulation in the egg industry,” Cortez Masto wrote.

The price of eggs has increased by 60 percent from December 2021 to December 2022, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Nevada’s average price for a carton of eggs has surged to $6.07 at the end of 2022, while the national average is $4.25, Cortez Masto’s letter says, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Price Outlook for 2023 projected that egg prices will increase by another 27.3 percent in 2023.

In the letter, Cortez Masto asked the agencies to communicate with the public regarding updates on efforts to lower the prices of eggs and to provide recommendations to Congress on actions that it could take.

“Because today’s high egg prices stem from a multitude of factors, including the avian flu, it is imperative for the Administration to leverage all available resources and reports to expose any unfair pricing,” Cortez Masto wrote.

Contact Jessica Hill at jehill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jess_hillyeah on Twitter.