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       NEW YORK: A box of 12 eggs reached an average price of $8.47 in New York on Friday — much higher than consumers are used to even after years of inflation — as the avian flu pandemic ravages poultry in the United States.

       In some stores, the price of the kitchen staple has jumped so much that they are now being sold per piece — as high as $2.90 for one egg.

       The pandemic has spread like wildfire, forcing poultry farmers to cull 26 million birds.

       The idea of selling “singles”, a practice more commonly associated with cigarettes, came to vendor Radhames Rodriguez when customers began to complain that they could no longer afford his eggs.

       “It’s too expensive. I’ve never seen the price like that on the eggs. I’ve been in business for over 40 years,” said Rodriguez.

       Rodriguez said that the uptick in egg prices had been followed by cost spikes for other products, like avocados, which he now sells as wrapped plastic quarters.

       “We’ve seen the price hike every other day,” he said. “The people are crying.”

       Published in Dawn, March 2nd, 2025