Interceptions of eggs smuggled into the United States from Mexico or Canada have increased sharply this year, a response, no doubt, to the high prices. Jeanne Whalen reports at the Wall Street Journal:
The 64 pounds of meth stuffed into the seats and spare tire of a pickup truck caught the attention of border agents in El Paso, Texas, who seized the drugs last month. But it was the trays of eggs that really alarmed them.
As egg prices soar in the U.S., travelers have been stocking up on cheaper supplies in Mexico and, to some degree, Canada. The U.S. Department of Agriculture bans such imports because eggs not inspected through official channels can spread disease.
So-called egg interceptions are up 36% nationwide so far this fiscal year, compared with the previous year, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Along parts of the Texas border, they have risen by 54%, according to CBP’s Laredo field office. In San Diego, they have more than doubled, CBP has reported.
The restrictions on imports of eggs are not due solely to industry lobbying or avian flu. There are risks of salmonella and other diseases as well.
I’m sure the health issues you cite should be heeded.
I have been trying to get the backstory on why monopoly infected the egg industry. It may be simple lobbying.
Bad policy.
Drew, you forget that you dont believe in price gouging, or is that only when a Dem is in office?
Steve
Industry consolidation has a price as well as a benefit. If the pork industry is hit with
swine brucellosis the same thing will happen to pork prices.
I’m facing that, personally, on an ongoing basis. Products on which I have relied for decades are being discontinued rapidly, their producers having been acquired by larger companies with competing products of their own. As I have mentioned before the history of such acquisitions is that the parent companies’ products will always triumph. The entrenched internal political interests guarantee it.
Contrary to the opinion of many it is not the case that the best products prevail. It’s more complex than that. Frequently, the cheapest products prevail regardless of quantity.
A YouTube channel that features historical information has informed me that the favorite drink enjoyed by the Führer, Adolf Hitler, was Coca Cola. War time sanctions caused Germany to run out of necessary syrup and a program was launched to find a product acceptable to him.
The result was a sweet orange flavored drink they named Fanta which is still produced and distributed worldwide today.
Post war, Coca Cola returned to the Fatherland and distribution rights were obtained by Max Schmeling, former world heavyweight boxing champion and former pride of the Fatherland until his defeat by
American Joe Louis.