If there's one thing supermarkets sell a lot of, it's eggs.
But you have probably noticed that they've become a lot harder to get hold of recently - and if they are in stock, prices have shot up.
We reported on the shortage last month, when shoppers were reporting finding empty shelves.
Yet it was towards the end of 2022 when the shortages first hit, as producers cut back or left the industry altogether due to the soaring production costs. And the culling of chickens following an outbreak of bird flu has been another contributing factor.
READ MORE: Join the FREE Manchester Evening News WhatsApp community
With figures out this week showing that British households are facing the fastest annual increase in food and drink prices since 1977, with eggs among the products rising the most, I decided to visit each supermarket to see what stock levels are like and where I could find the cheapest eggs.
With so many types of eggs on the market these days - I'm not sure who would spend £3.60 on half a dozen eggs - my aim was to buy the cheapest large pack available, along with a six-pack of large free range eggs.
While there were varying packs available in every store, supplies were running low. And I think a morning shop helped, as each time I've shopped in the evening recently I've been unable to get any.
Some have put signs up warning of the shortage, the most prominent being in Sainsbury's, while Lidl is limiting shoppers to two packs per customer.
The cheapest large packs are generally the mixed weight boxes of 15 eggs from caged hens.
Only two retailers had them in stock - Asda, where its Just Essentials pack is £1.99 and Iceland, where the pack costs £2.20.
Lidl had a pack of 10 large ones for £1.79, while the other larger packs I was able to get were all free range and of varying weights.
M&S now sells a 15-pack of mixed weight for £2.50, Sainsbury's 15 medium pack is £2.60 and the cheapest available at Tesco was a dozen large free range for £2.80.
However a sign in Tesco explains that because of the current situation, with free range chickens having to be kept indoors, the free range packs actually 'contain barn eggs from hens that can still roam freely in large barns'.
On size and quality, the packs of half a dozen large free range eggs made for a more like-for-like comparison - and six of the stores had these in stock. Here's how they rank in price:
- Aldi £1.55
- Lidl £1.65
- Sainsbury's £1.75
- Morrisons £1.75
- Iceland £1.80
- Marks & Spencer £2.70
For those wanting something smaller - in terms of egg size and pack size - the standout product has to be Morrisons Savers eggs, which cost just 78p for half a dozen small ones.
Failing that, M&S has a mixed weight six-pack for £1.25 as part of its Remarksable budget range.
Have you struggled to find eggs in stock? Have you noticed how much they have risen in price? Let us know in the comments.
READ NEXT:
The entertainment centre named Lancashire's visitor attraction of the year
Anger as seaside splash park reopens for spring with some BIG changes
The £4 a go swimming pool with ripster slide, rapids, wave machine and more
'I did the exact same shop at Aldi and Lidl to see which is cheapest'
We tried lemon drizzle cake from every supermarket and this one had us drooling
