(CNS): Agriculture Minister Jay Ebanks has said that, based on 2025 data, the level of self-sufficiency in local egg production is now at around 53%. There are 106 egg farmers in the Cayman Islands producing an average of 164,346 eggs per week (around 13,700 dozen). Answering a question in parliament about the newly regulated sector, Ebanks said the government remains focused on supporting local production and encouraging demand.
Dwayne Seymour asked a follow-up question about how the recent fall in US egg prices had affected local producers and whether they were throwing eggs away because of it.
The minister said the US price drop has had an effect, but the government is talking to grocery stores to ensure they support local suppliers, as some are in a position to ramp up egg production. However, they cannot be certain now that they will be able to sell them to the supermarkets, as many stores returned to buying large quantities from the United States when the prices dropped.
Ebanks said officials have been going to the hotels and introducing local products, and many of them are now buying local eggs from the suppliers directly. Local egg farmers are also supplying the prison.
The minister stressed the importance of the NEST programme, designed to regulate and encourage production, to make the country self-sufficient in eggs, which was seen as “low-lying fruit” that could become sustainable very quickly by increasing homegrown foods.
“I figure if we get to the point where we’re getting all of our supermarkets to start to take more local eggs, we’ll be able to get to… 75 to 80%” of the market being covered by local producers, he said.
“And it may take a little pressure to put on the supermarkets, but I don’t mind putting pressure on them. I’m okay with that,” the minister stated in response to Seymour’s question. “But I can tell you the government is going to have to do something to put more pressure on the import of eggs so that we can grow the local market even better.”
He said the ministry needs to collect enough accurate data on the level of local production. Seymour also asked the minister to consider a moratorium on imported eggs, or at least higher tariffs, to encourage everyone to support the local farmers and eventually become self-sufficient in egg production.
The ministry began organising and certifying local egg production through the National Egg Strategy (NEST) just two years ago. Last year, the government purchased around 1,500 broilers to give to local producers and has opened a special egg facility at the Department of Agriculture to support them, with the goal of having local farmers supply almost all the eggs Cayman residents are consuming.
Since the highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1), aka bird flu, was detected in the United States, the price of eggs in local stores has fluctuated wildly, reaching highs last year of more than CI$10 per dozen for even ordinary eggs, which at the time made local eggs ranging from CI$4-5 much more attractive.
The current drop in the price of imported eggs here to as low as $2.50 could easily go up again in the coming months. Egg prices remain volatile due to ongoing concerns about bird flu, and recent reports from Europe indicate that prices are already spiking there.
