Egg prices across the United States have fallen significantly in recent months, with Nevada consumers seeing an even steeper decline.
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Tuesday, the national average price for a dozen Grade A eggs decreased by 17.8% from March to April, dropping to $5.12 from March's record high of $6.23.
After the Nevada Department of Agriculture suspended the state's cage-free egg requirement in late February, egg prices in Southern Nevada plunged nearly 50% within two months, according to a department report.
Before the suspension, Las Vegas residents were paying an average of $10.45 per dozen eggs -- more than 75% above the national average. By April, local prices had fallen to an average of $5.62 per dozen, significantly closing the gap with national prices.
The decline in Nevada occurred rapidly, with prices dropping to $6.65 by mid-March.
Assemblyman Howard Watts III, D-Las Vegas -- who co-sponsored Assembly Bill 171 allowing the suspension of the cage-free egg requirement -- said the report was evidence the policy had been a success, even when accounting for the nationwide price decline.
"This temporary measure is going to continue to be in effect for another month or two, and I think we're going to continue to see positive results," Watts said.
American Farm Bureau Federation economist Bernt Nelson told CNN early last month that the national price drop was due to a steep decline in cases of bird flu, and that trend has continued, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The USDA found 23 million birds affected by avian flu -- one chicken testing positive means all of them on a farm are culled -- in January. By April, that number had fallen to around 1 million.
While the United States manages the outbreak, overseas suppliers have helped ease shortages. Egg imports increased by 500% from January to February, when the U.S. imported the equivalent of around 12 million dozen egg containers, according to the USDA.
The USDA also announced a $1 billion investment to combat bird flu in February. Half of that money is going toward "biosecurity measures" to protect farms, while another $400 million provides financial relief for farmers dealing with the disease.
The state Department of Agriculture expects prices to drop throughout the cage-free moratorium, which ends in June. According to its report, only two stores, both in Northern Nevada, reported having "limited supplies" over the Easter holiday season.
The national downward trend "means that, hopefully, after the end of the 120 days, we'll be in a good place, which is exactly how the law was designed to work," Watts said.
The report additionally found that most Nevada consumers may not have noticed many changes to the eggs on store shelves because, according to the report, "grocery stores continue to offer almost exclusively cage-free eggs for sale."
The restaurant and resort industries are using "significant numbers of eggs from conventional egg-laying suppliers," according to the report.
Most positive feedback on the suspension came from restaurant owners, the report found.
"Whenever restaurants are drawing from that same source of supply, that's putting additional pressure on the egg supply for consumers," Watts explained. "No matter who's buying or selling, the law has been effective in terms of increasing the supply and helping bring down prices."
The April price drop of 12.7% nationally was the steepest monthly decline in egg prices since March 1984, NPR reported.
Despite this significant decrease, egg prices remain historically high compared with pre-pandemic levels, when they consistently hovered around $2 per dozen.
The gap between the national average and local store prices is more prominent in Northern Nevada, where eggs were selling for $7.32 a dozen in mid-April, according to the report.
While Nevada isn't alone in banning caged eggs -- California, Arizona and Colorado have similar laws -- 60% of egg-laying hens in the United States still live in a caged environment, according to the USDA.
Nevada Republican lawmakers had previously criticized Democrats for the policy, saying AB 171 was just fixing a problem created during the Biden administration. Watts maintained during the legislative process that the bill was designed to be utilized only in emergency situations to prevent the state from taking a "step backwards" on the cage-free requirement passed in 2021.
"We've provided this kind of relief valve, and now we just have to give it some time and hopefully things are going to continue to trend in the right direction," Watts concluded.