On October 15, during an interview in Taipei, Lin Tianlai, the chairman of the Taipei Egg Merchant Association, highlighted a significant oversight in Taiwan’s egg production. He announced that starting today, egg prices would be reduced by an additional NT$3, bringing the farm gate price down to NT$21.5 per 600 grams and the wholesale price to NT$31, levels that are even lower than those seen during the pandemic when consumer demand was weak.
Reports from local media, including China Times, United Daily News, and Economic Daily, indicate that Taiwan is currently experiencing a daily surplus of approximately 1 million eggs. The Taiwan Egg Chicken Production and Marketing Supervision Committee has issued its first warning about “severe oversupply”, leaving many egg farmers facing dire financial losses due to the persistent low prices.
Just last year, there was a severe egg shortage in Taiwan, but the situation has flipped dramatically. Public opinion is now criticizing the government’s shortsighted policies that contributed to last year’s crisis.
Liu Weizhi, an executive director of the Taipei Egg Merchant Association, noted that the agricultural authorities had overreacted to last year’s egg shortage by permitting an excessive number of chicken imports, resulting in this current oversupply. Huang Rongzhen, head of the Taiwan Poultry Association, explained that while there was a previous limit on breeding hen imports of around 180,000, this cap was expanded to over 300,000 last year, indicating poor control over total imports.
Additionally, there are concerns regarding the absence of a price monitoring and early warning mechanism in relevant departments. Yunlin County Commissioner Zhang Lishan pointed out the lack of a warning system for the production and sales structure as a contributing factor, urging a comprehensive review by the authorities. Professor Lei Lifen from National Taiwan University suggested that a coordinated research effort should be initiated to predict future egg production, demand, and price fluctuations.
In response to the backlash from egg farmers and public criticism, the agricultural authorities have been shifting the blame to consumers. Chen Junji, a responsible official, stated months ago that the surplus is due to a decrease in egg consumption among consumers since last year. Another official, Li Yiqian, echoed this sentiment, attributing the oversupply to a dull consumer market and suggesting that the military and schools increase their egg consumption moving forward.
However, many residents in Taiwan are skeptical of this explanation. According to China Times, numerous online commenters have pointed out that breakfast spots still charge NT$15 to NT$20 per egg, and retail egg prices have not seen any significant decline. One user lamented, “When production was insufficient, prices soared. Now that there is a surplus, why haven’t prices dropped? The final price always rises and never falls. It’s absurd to blame the public for not consuming eggs while the farm price crashes.”
To address the 2023 egg shortage, the government not only allowed for large-scale imports of breeding chickens but also facilitated the import of over 150 million eggs, with more than 11 million eggs still in stock.
