The sudden hike in the egg price in the State has hit the consumers hard, who are still affected by the high prices of vegetables in the market.
The price for a dozen of eggs which was Rs 60 a week ago has now gone up to Rs 80. So, the price of an egg which was Rs 5 is now being charged Rs 7.
Trade circles said that in winter usually the price is high. Due to surplus stocks in 2016, the poultry farmers had drastically reduced the price. But there has been less supplies in the market.
Besides, as Odisha is unable to meet the growing demand, eggs have to be procured from nieghbouring Andhra Pradesh, where production has been hit due to heavy rains. Some consumers said as they are unable to afford meat product, eggs are only sources of animal protein for them. But due to the skyrocketing prices, it has also vanished from their meals.
With the increase in egg prices, the costs of fast food items are also bound to go up as egg is one of the main ingredients in these items.
Egg is also going to vanish from the midday meals of schoolchildren as the total cost of a meal is only Rs 4.