Mexican Egg Prices Post Biggest Jump in Two Decades, Stressing Low-Income Households

Mexico City — Egg prices in Mexico rose 7.92% in the first half of August, the steepest increase for that period in two decades, according to the national statistics agency INEGI. The spike is straining low-income families, who devote more than half of their spending to basic food.

The biweekly jump — compared with the second half of July — is the largest since 2006, when prices climbed 8.54%. At Mexico City’s Central de Abasto, the average retail price of a kilogram of eggs jumped from 30 pesos in late July to 37 pesos in mid-August, a 23.33% increase, according to the National System for Market Information and Integration (SNIIM).

The increase made eggs the largest single contributor to national inflation during the first 15 days of August. Recent biweekly movements for eggs have been mostly negative: -1.30% in 2025, -1.16% in 2023 and -1.95% in 2022, with 2024 the only positive year at 1.75%.

Demand for affordable protein such as eggs and chicken has surged since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Grupo Consultor de Mercados Agrícolas (GCMA), an agricultural consulting firm. Juan Carlos Anaya, GCMA’s director, said eggs and chicken are “democratic foods” because they are consumed across every income bracket. “Housewives prefer to rationalize their spending. You would like to buy beef, but it is more expensive,” he said.

Household spending on animal protein rose to 208.833 billion pesos in 2024, up 8% in real terms from 174.262 billion pesos in 2022, according to GCMA’s analysis of INEGI’s household income and expenditure survey (ENIGH). The share of food spending dedicated to animal protein increased from 39.1% to 39.8% over the same period.

The ENIGH data also highlight sharp class differences. Households in the top income decile spend 18% of their animal-protein budget on beef, while those in the lowest decile spend just 4%. For eggs, the split is far more even — 10% for the top decile versus 8% for the bottom — underscoring eggs’ role as a staple for all income groups. The research group México, ¿Cómo Vamos? noted that food absorbs 52% of spending in the poorest households compared with 14% in the wealthiest, a gap of 38 percentage points. “Inflation, particularly in food prices, affects lower-income households the most,” the group said in its ENIGH 2024 report.

Mexico remains the world’s largest egg consumer, with an average of 345 eggs per person per year — more than 26 kilograms — according to the National Poultry Union (UNA) and the Agriculture Ministry. The country is the fourth-largest global producer, manufacturing about 2.77 million tons annually, enough to meet domestic demand. A Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) analysis attributes the egg’s popularity to its deep cultural roots, affordability and culinary versatility.

Eggs are a rich source of protein, selenium, vitamins D, B6 and B12, zinc and iron, and contain just 75 calories each, making them a useful tool for weight management. From huevos a la mexicana to huevos motuleños, they remain a breakfast staple across Mexico.