Yahoo Finance Kremlin scrambled as egg prices in Russia soar by more than 40 per cent in a year
Eggs are being sold individually in Russia after the cost soared amid high inflation rates linked to the war in Ukraine.
Shops in Novosibirsk, Orenburg, Moscow and occupied Crimea are now selling individual eggs for between nine and 20 roubles (8p to 17p), according to the Sirena Telegram channel.
“200 roubles for a dozen eggs will scare away buyers,” Sirena quoted a shopkeeper in Crimea as saying.
The price of eggs in Russia jumped 13 per cent in October 2023 and another 15 per cent in November, according to Russia’s statistics agency.
Overall the cost of eggs has risen 42 per cent in a year.
Russian media is extensively covering egg demand, with an outlet recently publishing footage showing dozens of people in the south queuing in the snow before dawn to buy cheap eggs from a truck.
Egg price surveys are also closely being followed by Russians online.
The Kremlin has sought to blame media hysteria and stockpiling for the price rises but economists have blamed Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine for soaring food prices.
Western sanctions, wage rises to plug labour shortages and the falling rouble have combined to drive inflation, especially for fuel and food.
Russia’s Central Bank has said that overall inflation is around seven per cent but this disguises far higher price rises in consumer products.
Artyom Deyev, an analyst for the AMarkets brokerage, also said that consumer price rises were now built into the Russian system because Putin reorientated Russia’s economy to prioritise his military.
“Prices will continue to rise, affecting the widest possible range of goods, from food to electronics and cars,” he told the Invest Foresight website.
The Kremlin blames hoarders for rising egg prices, a throwback to Soviet times when similar capitalist scapegoats were blamed for empty shop shelves.
“This is down to the malicious intent of entrepreneurs, retail chains and distributors,” said Oleg Pavlov, a deputy chairman at Rospotrebnadzor, the Kremlin’s consumer rights unit.
The Kremlin has now told supermarkets to limit price rises on eggs, instructed officials to buy them from Turkey to boost supplies and ordered inspectors to raid warehouses looking for them.
Egg prices have also soared in Britain and Europe along with other food products in the past year because of the increased cost of production linked to high energy prices.
