Prices of chicken eggs reached a 10-month high in early December as demand for commercial use in winter dishes and Christmas cakes increased while production slumped in reaction to excessive supplies the previous year, the farm ministry said Monday.
The nationwide average retail price for a package of 10 midsize eggs rose 6 yen from the previous week to 222 yen from Nov. 29 to Dec. 3, the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry said. That's a record high for the sixth straight week since the survey began last February.
The latest average egg price is about 50 yen higher than year-earlier levels and the highest in 14 years, according to an estimate of average prices for December calculated based on Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry statistics.
But egg prices are expected to drop in January in view of stable movements in wholesale egg prices and because business demand will probably fall in the month, an official at the farm ministry's Food Safety and Consumer Affairs Bureau said.
Meanwhile, beef prices remained high but were relatively stable.
The average price of imported chilled beef loin rose 6 yen to 372 yen per 100 grams, while the average for domestically produced beef fell 5 yen to 687 yen.