Commentary
Avian flu certainly deserves more media attention. The avian flu currently impacting our poultry sector has become a real problem. Unlike previous strains, the current bird flu has spread across Canada, raising fears that it could become endemic in wild birds, no less. A nightmare.
According to the latest news, more than 60 farms are under investigation in Canada. Avian flu has infected approximately 200 farms, with over 3.6 million birds, this year alone. That’s a lot of inventory that never reached the consumer market.
Of course, retail prices have been heavily impacted by the flu for months. In the United States, for example, eggs are up by more than 40 percent since last year, a record. The scenario is not much better in Canada, where supply management and our quota system typically stabilize the balance between supply and demand. Eggs in Canada have increased by about 20 percent in some regions, the largest annual increase in 50 years….