Posted on 02/11/2025 7:04:19 AM PST by daniel1212
Karoline Leavitt blames Biden for egg shortage, but killing infected birds was Trump’s policy, too .
If Your Time is short
About 108 million commercial egg-laying chickens have died since a highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak began in 2022, either from the virus or culling, Agriculture Department data shows.
Depopulation of a farm’s chickens, most of which would die anyway, takes place to prevent the virus’ spread.
Depopulation is not a new strategy unique to former President Joe Biden’s administration. It also was USDA policy during President Donald Trump’s first term.
See the sources for this fact-check
President Donald Trump promised to lower prices for groceries, including eggs. But one crack in his plan is that egg prices haven’t fallen since he took office Jan. 20.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, in her first on-camera press briefing Jan. 28, blamed that on former President Joe Biden’s "inflationary policies."
Leavitt said the Biden administration and the U.S. Agriculture Department "directed the mass killing of more than 100 million chickens, which has led to a lack of chicken supply in this country, therefore a lack of egg supply, which is leading to the shortage."[...]
White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly referred PolitiFact back to Leavitt’s press briefing comments.
Egg prices rose under Biden — from $1.60 per dozen in February 2021 to $4.10 in December 2024 (his first and last full months in office), Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows. The Agriculture Department’s January food price outlook said egg prices could rise about 20% more this year.
A spokesperson for Expana, a company that tracks consumer prices, told Axios that a dozen large eggs costs more than $7 in some U.S. regions.
Since Feb. 8, 2022, when the virus was detected in a commercial flock, more than 147 million birds, including chickens, turkeys, ducks and geese, have died, the USDA said.
USDA data shows 108 million egg-laying chickens died since 2022, including 13 million in 2025. It’s not clear how many were euthanized or died of the virus.
As of Jan. 29, bird flu has also been detected in dairy cattle, affecting 944 herds in 16 states, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data shows. Humans have also tested positive for the virus — 67 confirmed cases have been reported in the U.S. and one person has died, the CDC said.[...]
"If the birds are dead, the virus dies along with them," Russ Daly, a veterinarian for the South Dakota Department of Health and a South Dakota State University professor, said.
Chickens that contract the bird flu virus have little chance of survival; 90% to 100% of them die, usually within 48 hours, the CDC said.
Waiting for the chickens to die naturally allows more viral load into the atmosphere, making it more dangerous for the farm workers and other people who come in contact with the farm, Jada Thompson, a University of Arkansas agricultural economics and agribusiness associate professor, said.
Is this policy new?
Several veterinary professors told PolitiFact that depopulation or "stamping out" of sick birds is a long-standing policy and pointed to a 2015 bird flu outbreak during the Obama administration.[...]
A 2016 USDA report shows that depopulation in 2015 resulted in 50 million birds killed.
A USDA bird flu response plan, updated in May 2017 during Trump’s first administration, incorporates policy guidance based on lessons from influenza outbreaks during the Obama and first Trump administrations. It said "rapid depopulation of infected poultry is critical to halt virus transmission and must be prioritized."
During a March 2017 bird flu outbreak, a USDA report said, "nearly 253,000 birds were depopulated." [...]
Our ruling
Leavitt said there’s an egg shortage because the Biden administration "directed the mass killing of more than 100 million chickens."
Leavitt’s statement is partially accurate but leaves out important details and context. We rate it Half True.
I find their lack of testosterone ... disturbing. And I see at least one who is almost certainly queer.
72 eggs a week. Plus a lot of beef and cheese. You must have a much larger frame than me!
The high concentration method of farming livestock will end.
You can’t have that many animals that close together and be surprised this happens.
It’s possible the layers are processed for consumption, don’t really know if there are rules against it, although it’s probably into processed precooked products.
Also meat chickens are different breedlines than laying hens, so maybe have more resistance. Backyard flocks also seem to be healthier and more resistant.
You could be right.
Just a guess.
But very little surprises me these days.
Yes.
Egg farmers and meat chicken farmers are two different groups raising two very different types of chickens in two totally different ways.
They could be containing the flocks and waiting to see which chickens are naturally immune, breed the immune birds and end up with an immune flock. But the government is killing all of the birds, including the naturally immune ones.
It was enough to anger me beyond belief, renewed as I grabbed my eggs for breakfast this morning. I penned this email to a local radio station not long after.
I did the deep dive a couple of weeks ago and found that feds/states are taking a "presumptive positive" case of HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza, aka H5N1) in a chicken flock, drawing a 3km circle on a map and culling - "Preemptive depopulation" - ALL chickens in that circle...
..."depopulation" aka "Stamping out"...
...while simultaneously displaying on the website that "infected chicken meat & eggs are safe for human consumption" and crowing about "chicken vaccines," telling workers to take "biosecurity measures" to stop a threat which comes from OVERHEAD (wild birds)...aka, "stop the spread."
"Preemptive depopulation of poultry on other premises in the Infected Zone (typically 3 kilometers around the index case, also known as the Infected Premises) may also be authorized.""When properly prepared and cooked, HPAI does not affect meat or egg products, and these food items remain safe."
Worse, the CDC is still operating under the aegis of 'climate change' lunacy with their "One Health" approach:
https://www.cdc.gov/one-health/about/index.html
"The earth has experienced changes in climate and land use, such as deforestation and intensive farming practices. Disruptions in environmental conditions and habitats can provide new opportunities for diseases to pass to animals."https://www.aphis.usda.gov/sites/default/files/depopulationpolicy.pdf
The irony is that the so-called vaccinations and culling are failing to protect the flocks, making them more vulnerable to infection, no different than humans and covid.
This is an economic assault upon Americans by a government still 'infected' by Big Pharma.
THAT's our egg "crisis." Now they're pushing it to livestock & dairy cows.
But don't take my word for it: Go look for yourself.
35-42 eggs plus about 7 pounds of beef a couple pounds of cheese. That is pretty much what I eat every day added up. Then on top of that I could eat a couple beef hot dogs a day or chicken breasts. I cant eat most grains and veggies. Beans are also not good for me. I will eat some fruit but limit it because of the sugars.
I weigh about 180 and am on the lean side but I am very active. Lots of muscle from work. 6 eggs is only 420 calories and a pound of beef 85/15 is 975 calories. the cheese is a couple hundred more calories. Two grilled chicken breast another 600 calories. That is a days food most days for me. it is about 22-2500 calories. I don’t eat a lot of processed foods. So the calories are not to high.
That is a key factor, plus perhaps a fast metabolism(?).
At 72 and about 5'4'' and 128 lbs, and with a rather slow metabolism (get cold easily), then in the winter in NE I do not eat much due to far less activity than in warn weather, when I am usually active outside.
By the grace of God. I have only seen a doctor once for an issue in about the last 45 years (piece of rust from exhaust system got stuck in my eye, which I likely could have taken out myself, but a church member insisted on taking me to an eye doc).
Thank God for good health, who in Christ also provides for salvation of the soul as most important.
Maybe they are? But if 90% are dying from it, that’s an awful lot of chickens for 10% to have to replace.
My cousin used to raise layers and I believe he said his chicken houses had around 50,000 birds in them.
That’s just like abortion. Preemptive death penalty.
;-)
Yikes! WRONG THREAD! THANK YOU!
I didn’t even notice until now.
Which thread did you intend?
Lies like that are par for the course for these folks, government & 'fact-checkers' alike.
Great job summing it up in the comment. GREAT POST!!!
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