Fipronil Event Influences Egg Market Longer Term
Berlin, November 16, 2017. “Anyone who wants to bake with German eggs during the Advent season should look for locally produced eggs at an early stage,” warns Henner Schönecke, Chairman of the Bundesverband Deutsches Ei e. V. (BDE), with a view to the pre-Christmas period and the baking season that is now beginning. Widespread supply bottlenecks are expressly not to be expected, but: "The consequences of what happened with Fipronil in late summer are still affecting the supply situation for eggs on the German market." the effects of the Fipronil incidents are occasionally felt directly by the consumer. And those who attach particular importance to the German origin of the eggs may not always be able to find them in sufficient quantities on the market due to the scarce supply.
German production covers just under 70 percent of domestic egg demand
Only four German laying hen farms were affected by the fipronil events, and they got into this situation through no fault of their own. However, eggs from Belgium and the Netherlands in particular are missing. This has consequences, because German production can currently only cover around 67 percent of domestic demand itself - so a third has to be imported from neighboring countries. However, many of the affected foreign laying hen farms are still closed and cannot deliver. German production cannot compensate for this in the short term. "Nevertheless, we are firmly convinced that everyone involved is making every effort to ensure a balanced supply of eggs from German origin in the interests of customer satisfaction," says Schönecke. He adds: “As a consequence, we have to expand domestic production! Only if we can meet the demand ourselves with new stables in Germany that promote animal welfare will the supply of safe eggs remain unaffected by foreign crises.”
"Even if the affected Dutch and Belgian companies are trying to rebuild their stocks as quickly as possible, the normalization of the situation will probably last well into the new year 2018. But consumer protection and food safety must have priority!” adds ZDG President Friedrich-Otto Ripke.
BDE and ZDG therefore call on everyone involved in the egg market - suppliers and food retailers as well as consumers - to treat each other prudently and with understanding. Advent and Christmas offer the best framework for this.
About the ZDG
The Central Association of the German Poultry Industry eV represents the interests of the German poultry industry at federal and EU level as a professional umbrella and umbrella organization vis-à-vis political, official and professional organisations, the public and abroad. The approximately 8.000 members are organized in federal and state associations. The German laying hen farmers are organized in the Bundesverband Deutsches Ei eV.
