Is Climate Change to Blame for Food Inflation?
“We are currently experiencing difficulty sourcing eggs that meet our strict animal welfare standards.” — Whole Foods Market
I’ve seen similar signs and similarly vacant egg coolers at a variety of grocery stores around town. Bird Flu!
Is bird flu a consequence of our changing climate? In part, yes, and we should expect continued fluctuations in grocery prices because of it.
The present day outbreak of the H5N1 avian bird flu first hit the US in 2022 with confirmed cases in all 50 states. The population size of our US egg-laying hens are at their lowest point in the last 10 years. And while the price of eggs fluctuates due to periods of high demand, the sustained price hike is absolutely due to the flu. “Since the start of 2020, the cost of eggs has increased by nearly 240%.” And it’s hard to find them in stock.
Why? As sea levels rise due to our warming climate, shorebirds are flying farther inland to nest. The migratory journeys of many bird species are adjusting to the earlier onset of spring while their routes are changing. This means that more often than ever before, wild bird populations, carrying the flu virus, are coming into contact with egg-producing farms. Climate change is affecting your morning omelet!
But the price destabilization should not be expected to stop at your breakfast table. In 2024 alone, American farmers collectively suffered $20.3 billion in weather and fire related crop and rangeland losses. From late season winter storms and intense rain totals, to droughts and fires, damages to the lands that produce our foods are frequent and costly. Hurricane Helene (2024) wiped out $13 million in blueberries and another $10 million in apples in NC alone. The storm ripped through many farm intensive states in the southeast US causing similar damage.
The natural world is responding to changes in seasonal transitions. I, aided by participants in my after school program, Citizen Naturalists, collect phenological data for the National Phenology Network (NPN). We monitor local species of plants and animals, reporting life cycle stages through NPN’s Nature’s Notebook project. The accumulation of this data has given scientists insight into nature’s response to human caused climate change. There is now significant evidence of emerging mismatches between interacting species. Flowering plants are budding earlier in the year, responding to warming temperatures, while their partner pollinators, who respond to light cues, not temperature cues, are not available to pollinate their partner flowers so early. According to the USDA, 35% of global food crops depend on animal pollination. “That’s 1 out of every 3 bites of food you eat.”
Climate change is one of many factors affecting the price of groceries. And it’s not a problem for the future. It’s here, now.
What can you do?
- Learn to be more flexible with what you eat. It’s easier to do that now when we have choices.
- Shopping at local farmer’s markets ticks many boxes off the climate action to-do list. Don’t forget your canvas bags from home.
- Get in the game. Use the app Budburst to report seasonal tree changes for data collection, or become a Nature’s Notebook contributor through NPN.
- Include the young people in your life in any and all of these actions. Its the reality of the world they’re inheriting and we have to equip them with strategies to thrive.
- Stay #climateconscious and learn more. Check out this piece on the Path to Positive Communities page: The Hidden Housing Cost of Climate Change
About the Author
Rachel Woods is a P2P Climate Ambassador in Holly Springs, NC and an Environmental Educator @ Dragonfly Nature Programs LLC. Follow Rachel on LinkedIn for more #ClimateConscious content: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-woods/
Additional Resources
Register to Watch: American Climate Leadership Awards 2025
Mental Health and Our Changing Climate: Children and Youth Report 2023