Amid reeling from rising sugar prices, a new data point has emerged with regards to our everyday breakfast. Egg prices in India have risen nearly 40% over the past year, and poultry industry executives expect further increases this winter as ethanol production continues to draw away maize supplies.
The National Egg Co-ordination Committee (NECC) pegs the rise at 35-40% over the past year. Ex-farm prices now stand near Rs 7 per egg. Retail prices range between Rs 8.50 and Rs 9 per egg across most Indian cities.
Maize Is The Core Problem
Poultry feed depends heavily on maize, which makes up 65-70% of total poultry production costs, according to NECC. A growing share of India's maize harvest is now going to ethanol distilleries, leaving less for poultry farmers.
An NECC official told The Economic Times that roughly 37% of India's total maize production now goes to ethanol distilleries, and linked this diversion directly to the past year's egg price increase.
Maize prices reflect the squeeze. A tonne of maize cost around Rs 14,000 three years ago. It now costs nearly Rs 26,500, with almost 20% of that increase coming in just the past five months.
The Ethanol Blending Push
The pressure traces back to India's ethanol blending programme, under which oil companies must blend ethanol into petrol. The national blending ratio has reached 20%. Both sugarcane and maize feed this programme, and maize's rising diversion has hit poultry feed supplies in particular.
Parliamentary data puts India's total maize production at around 43.4 million tonnes, with nearly 17 million tonnes now used for ethanol. That figure has grown sharply, from under 1 million tonnes in 2022 to 6 million tonnes in 2024 to the current 17 million tonnes. Ethanol's maize consumption could reach 25 million tonnes by 2030, per industry projections cited by ET.
The poultry sector consumes about 60% of India's maize output, making it the crop's largest domestic user. Ethanol producers now compete directly with poultry farmers for the same limited supply.
A senior poultry industry executive told ET that heat stress, mortality rates, weather disruptions and the cost of imported feed ingredients also weigh on production costs, beyond the maize squeeze alone.
Other Kitchen Staples Under Pressure Too
Eggs are not the only item straining household budgets. Onion retail prices rose 59% year-on-year to Rs 43.53 per kilogram as of August 24, touching Rs 60 per kilogram in Chennai. The government launched "Kanda Express" to address the gap between demand and supply.
Jaggery prices rose around 25% over the past fortnight in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, taking the average retail price to Rs 65 per kilogram. Edible oil prices climbed nearly 15% over the past month ahead of the festive season, pushing retail prices above Rs 200 per litre.
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