Two major restaurant chains have scrapped extra fees on eggs after prices cooled off, easing the pinch on customers.
🥚 Why It Matters: Rising egg costs hit diners’ wallets earlier this year, but these reversals mean less added expense when you order breakfast out.
🐔 What’s Happening:
- Waffle House removed its 50-cent per egg surcharge on June 2 after imposing it in February across 1,900 locations.
- Denny’s ended its variable egg surcharge on May 21, following a similar timeline.
📉 Price Shift: Egg prices surged due to bird flu outbreaks that forced mass culling of poultry, pushing the average cost per dozen eggs to a record $6.23 in March, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since then, prices have dropped to $4.55 in May, the lowest since December.
🌎 Supply Factors: Imports from countries like Brazil and Mexico, along with government biosecurity efforts, have helped stabilize egg availability and prices. The USDA has approved new import facilities and supported farms in upgrading defenses against avian flu.
🦠 Looking Ahead: Officials warn that fall could bring fresh challenges as migratory birds may spread the virus again, potentially impacting egg supplies and prices.
How to Read and Understand the News
Truth doesn’t bend because we dislike it.
Facts don’t vanish when they make us uncomfortable.
Events happen whether we accept them or not.
Good reporting challenges us. The press isn’t choosing sides — it’s relaying what official, verified sources say. Blaming reporters for bad news is like blaming a thermometer for a fever.
Americans have a history of misunderstanding simple things. In the 1980s, A&W rolled out a 1/3-pound burger to compete with McDonald’s Quarter Pounder. It failed because too many people thought 1/3 was smaller than 1/4. If we can botch basic math, we can certainly misread the news.
Before dismissing a story, ask yourself:
- What evidence backs this?
- Am I reacting to facts or feelings?
- What would change my mind?
- Am I just shooting the messenger?
And one more: Am I assuming bias just because I don’t like the story?
Smart news consumers seek truth, not comfort.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
