Eggs are 70% more expensive than they were a year ago

By Danielle Wiener-Bronner, CNN

Egg prices are still going up - way up - in the grocery store.

In January, egg prices rose 8.5% compared to the month before, according to inflation data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Tuesday. In the year through January, egg prices soared 70.1%.

A highly-contagious, deadly avian flu has wreaked havoc in the egg market, constraining the national egg supply. That, plus higher feed and transportation costs for producers, has raised prices. And some producers are also raising their own profits amidst the turmoil, causing some to demand a federal investigation into possible price gouging.

In the wholesale market, egg prices hit a record peak in December and have been steadily falling since then. But so far, those declines haven't reached consumers, as seen in January's numbers.

And compared to other grocery items, egg prices rose most dramatically.

But plenty of other foods got more expensive this year as well. Some dairy product prices increased sharply: Butter spiked 26.3% and margarine rose a startling 44.7%.

Many other staples got way more expensive over the past year. Flour jumped 20.4%, bread got 14.9% pricier, sugar went up 13.5% and milk rose 11%. Chicken prices went up 10.5% and, together, fruit and vegetable prices increased 7.2%. Hot dogs got 11.4% more expensive. Breakfast sausages went up 10.1%.

But there were some items that got less expensive. Bacon prices dropped 3.9%, and uncooked beef steaks fell 3%.

Overall, groceries got 11.3% pricier over the course of the year, while menu prices grew 8.2%. Together, food prices went up 10.1% for the year, eclipsing overall inflation of 6.4%.

The government uses certain tools, like interest rates, to try to stem price increases in general. But it has made limited attempts to control food prices.

In addition to disease, food prices are impacted by climate change, as well as international crises like the war in Ukraine, which has affected the global grain supply.

Grocery prices in January

In the month of January, grocery prices went up 0.4% compared to December, adjusting for seasonal swings. Menu prices rose 0.6%, for an overall monthly food increase of 0.5%.

Some individual items got more expensive. Ham prices jumped 3%, citrus fruit jumped 2.8% and packaged cookies got 2.5% more expensive. Bananas ticked up 1.5%, and rice went up 1.4%. Fresh fruit rose .8%.

But it's not all bad news. There were plenty of items that got cheaper last month.

Pork chops and hot dogs each fell by 3.5%, and fresh vegetable prices went down 2.3%. Tomatoes in particular saw a sharp decline, dropping 7.7%. Butter fell 1.7%, and milk 0.4%.