As small-sized eggs become more common during the summer months, the Department of Agriculture (DA) has clarified that this trend will not directly impact the overall egg supply in the country.

In an interview with PTV on Friday, April 19, Agriculture Assistant Secretary and Spokesperson Arnel de Mesa said that prolonged hot weather have some effects on egg production, potentially leading to smaller eggs being produced.

Nevertheless, Mesa assured consumers that eggs of varying sizes, including small, medium, and large, remain readily available to market demand.

“This is a natural occurrence which happens every summer. If the open space [areas] for chickens are heated, chickens will lose their appetite which, in turn, lessens their production,” he explained.

Similarly, De Mesa stated that cooler temperatures would allow chickens to eat more and produce larger-sized chickens. However, the El Niño phenomenon does not directly impact the downsizing.

“Not every coop is open-spaced. We have artificial or tunnel ventilation, so there are still enough medium and large-sized eggs in production.”

The average price for eggs is valued at P6 to P8.25 a piece according to the DA’s monitoring system.

Another price that has gone up is pork, as the African swine fever (ASF) continues to affect consumer value.

The DA noted that pork kasim is now at a P295 to P370 average, while liempo is at around P340 to P420 per kilo.

DA spokesperson also reported that there can be positive expectations with the rice prices, stating “the USDA projected that our imports would be at 3.9 million metric tons [MMT], lower than the initial 4.1 MMT.”

The agriculture sector explained that this was attributed to the harvest season, thus minimizing price hikes for rice.

The local well-milled rice is valued at around P48 to P55, while the regular milled is at P46 to P52.