Americans recognize that egg prices are rising, with 67% saying the costs have increased a lot

Egg prices in the United States are at their highest price in decades — and new YouGov polling indicates that American grocery shoppers have taken notice.

Four in five (81%) Americans say the price of eggs has increased in the past few months, and 67% say the costs have risen "a lot." But fewer people have heard about the primary reason for the egg prices rising: a highly contagious bird flu virus that has led to the deaths of millions of farm animals. About seven in 10 Americans (70%) have heard a lot (16%) or a little (53%) in the news about the animal-borne virus, and just 24% are very worried about the disease affecting more farm animals.

More generally, 82% of Americans say that grocery prices have increased "a lot" (63%) or "a little" (19%) over the past few months, including 85% of Americans who are the sole grocery shopper for their household. Americans who have noticed rising costs at the grocery store point to the dairy (83%) and meat (82%) departments as the areas with the most severe hikes. About three in five say fruit (61%) or vegetable (61%) costs have risen.

YouGov asked Americans who say grocery prices have increased "a lot" or "a little" in the past few months to share in an open-ended question about which specific items have gotten more expensive for them. Among the most common words mentioned were eggs — though, it's worth noting that the open-ended question was asked prior to asking Americans if they've noticed egg prices increasing — as well as milk, meat, and bread.

Most Americans say they feel frustrated (59%) when they see food prices rising. Two in five (42%) get angry, and 33% describe themselves as anxious when this happens.

People who describe themselves as the sole grocery shopper in their household say that in recent months they have been buying more discount items (79% say they have been doing this), buying less expensive items (78%), sticking to a set grocery list (72%), and buying fewer grocery items (71%).

See the toplines and crosstabs for this YouGov poll conducted on January 17 - 20, 2023.

Methodology: This poll was conducted on January 17 - 20, 2023 among 1,000 U.S. adult citizens. Respondents were selected from YouGov’s opt-in panel using sample matching. A random sample (stratified by gender, age, race, education, geographic region, and voter registration) was selected from the 2019 American Community Survey. The sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, education, 2020 election turnout and presidential vote, baseline party identification, and current voter registration status. Demographic weighting targets come from the 2019 American Community Survey. Baseline party identification is the respondent’s most recent answer given prior to March 15, 2022, and is weighted to the estimated distribution at that time (33% Democratic, 28% Republican). The margin of error for the overall sample is ±3

Image: Adobe Stock (Rakursstudio)

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