Once upon a time, there was a big problem with eggs! In many places, there was a sickness called bird flu that made many birds very sick. Because of this, farmers couldn’t get as many eggs from hens. Lots of hens were lost, and soon, many grocery stores had empty shelves. People were worried! They thought there might not be enough eggs to buy. So, they rushed to stores to buy as many eggs as they could. To help everyone get some eggs, some stores decided to limit how many eggs people could buy. For example, at Trader Joe's, you can only buy one dozen (that’s 12 eggs) each day. At Costco, you can buy three packs of eggs. Other stores, like Walmart and Sam's Club, also set limits. But why were eggs so important? Well, many yummy foods like pancakes and cookies need eggs. Even restaurants like Waffle House had to add a little extra to the price of eggs. They did not want to raise prices for everything, so they added a small fee just for eggs. Bakery owners, like Melissa Salmon from Little Blue Pastries, were really worried too. Her café needed about 30 to 40 dozen eggs every week! That is a lot of eggs! She decided to make more egg-free treats and use things like ground flax seeds instead. She even had to cancel a fun cookie decorating party for kids to save costs. Many people were buying eggs because they were scared of prices going even higher. Just like when there was a shortage of toilet paper during the pandemic, people started to panic. Egg prices have been changing a lot. They are expected to keep going up in the coming years. It’s important to stay calm and remember to share eggs so everyone can enjoy them!