Travelers from Mexico smuggling raw eggs across border amid rising food prices

Yahoo Finance’s Brooke DiPalma joins the Live show to discuss the recent surge in egg smuggling at the U.S. border.

Video Transcript

RACHELLE AKUFFO: As the price of eggs increases here in the US, so do the attempts to bring raw eggs and poultry across the US-Mexico border. That's according to the US Customs and Border Protection. Our Brooke DiPalma is here with the details. Didn't see this coming. This was not on my 2023 bingo card.

BROOKE DIPALMA: This was not on the bingo card for me either, Rachelle. Of course, the price of eggs are up 59.9% year over year, up 11.1% month over month in December of 2022, according to the latest CPI data. And it turns out people are doing all that they can to get eggs for cheaper.

In a statement to Yahoo Finance's from a US Customs and Border Protection official in El Paso, he said, quote, "We are seeing an increase in people attempt to cross eggs from Juarez to El Paso because they are"-- quote, unquote-- "significantly less expensive in Mexico than the US. This is also occurring with added frequency at other southwest border locations as well."

And he said while many headlines are saying that travelers are smuggling the raw eggs and poultry, he said most are actually declaring them during the primary inspection without consequence. Now if, however, they are discovered during an inspection, that's when a $300 civil penalty comes into play, and they are then seized from the traveler. But another US border official tweeting over the weekend in San Diego that in response to not declaring those eggs prior to an inspection, they can result in penalties up to $10,000.

Now, of course, this comes as the toll of the avian-flu outbreak is causing those prices to soar here in the US. Per the USDA, a total of 57 million birds have been wiped out, resulting in those higher prices that we're seeing across the US. Of course, some stores even seeing as high as $6, even maybe $7 to $8 for just a dozen of eggs.

RACHELLE AKUFFO: I mean, well at least the lesson here is declare them. You know, don't end up paying more in fines than you would for the eggs in the first place. So then, Brooke, will Americans expect to see relief any time soon?

BROOKE DIPALMA: Well, according to the US DA, inventory is on the rise, and therefore prices should then fall. Of course, this is going to take time. As I'm speaking to farmers across the US, they really say that because they had to, unfortunately, destroy part of their fleet, part of those laying hens that produce these eggs, it'll take into perhaps the second half of 2023, even into 2024 in order to restock that fleet of egg-laying hens and then ultimately get more eggs produced and to market. And therefore when we see that happen, then the egg prices will fall.

So it's not going to happen right away, Rachelle. We may see more wonky stories like this happen as Americans look to cut corners. But as of right now, it's going to take time.