You know those sky-high egg prices? They're affecting Mardi Gras king cakes too.

Bakers in Houma and Thibodaux say the rising cost of eggs and other ingredients has made it tough to keep king cake prices affordable this Mardi Gras season.

Shantelle Danos, owner of The Willow Cafe in Thibodaux, said a typical order for the bakery includes about 15 dozen eggs. She couldn't remember the usual price offhand, but her latest order cost $98 — $6.53 a dozen.

"My vendor was like, 'Hey, just a heads up, it's outrageous right now,' " she said. "And here we bake, we sell breakfast, so it's not like we are just using eggs for king cakes."

Danos said the price for a large king cake has risen $2 this year to $18.99.

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Rising egg prices have made national headlines in recent months, with the U.S. average hovering at $4.25 in December, up 137% compared to a year earlier, according to the Federal Reserve Bank in St. Louis. A massive outbreak of avian flu, rising demand during the holidays and general inflation are among reasons cited.

Overall, the average costs of bakery and dairy products have risen by more than 15% over the past year nationwide, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. But those costs can vary widely depending on the specific item or part of the country it's purchased.

Danos said it isn't just eggs, but the cost of everything has risen. It becomes a tough decision on how much to pass along to customers because as a small business owner she can't operate at a loss.

"It's hard because you have to make money to stay open," she said.

At Mr. Ronnie's Famous Hot Donuts in Houma, co-owner Bud Picou said inflation is causing a similar decisions for him. So far, he said, he hasn't increased the price of his king cakes this year.

"Just about everything it takes to make king cakes or donuts has more than doubled," he added. "The only thing that didn't double is the price because if we go up that much on the menu, we ain't gonna have no customers. People are hurting everywhere."

Mr. Ronnie's large king cake is priced at $18.70 without filling.

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Picou said he purchases the mix premade, but even that has doubled in price. As a donut shop, many of the menu items are fried, and even the price of shortening has risen. What once was $32 a cube is now $98.

The purple, green and gold sugar sprinkles that decorate the king cake have also risen in price.

"The price of that colored sugar that you put on top the cake, it used to be, I want to say, $12 or $14 for a carton. It is now like $30 a carton," Picou said.

He said the shop is barely breaking even right now, and if the cost of ingredients doesn't settle down soon, he may have to raise the prices. A dozen donuts went up by a dollar, but Picou said that hasn't helped much.

The donut shop took a beating from Hurricane Ida and then an electrical surge delayed its reopening a bit longer. Now, with inflation kicking in, it's the third in a series of blows.

"Well it's like, either lose money staying in business or lose business trying to stay in business," he said. "Neither one is a good choice, but I'm not in business to operate in the red either, and that's pretty much where it's about to be."

This article originally appeared on The Courier: Rising cost of eggs, other ingredients baked into Mardi Gras king cakes