Local bakeries feel impacts of high egg, butter prices

LEXINGTON, Ky (WTVQ)- Inflation and supply chain issues continue to impact some food prices, causing them to soar. On top of that, a deadly avian flu outbreak is hurting egg prices, making it more costly for local bakeries.

Egg prices are nearly 60% higher than a year ago, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bakeries that use eggs every day are feeling that pinch.

“We offer cheesecakes, cupcakes, cookies, and some Oreo pops and we do special cakes for customers,” says Kim Raymer, the store manager at Gigi’s Cupcakes.

Raymer says there is always something to celebrate, no matter the occasion and are always ready to be a part of someone’s special day. But one thing they’re not celebrating is the rising price of ingredients they use every day, namely eggs and butter.
The store says they’ve taken steps to help keep them from passing those costs onto customers.

“So what we’ve tried to do here is streamline our processes. We’ve reduced our inventory and minimized all our waste. So we have really been able to keep our prices from increasing by doing those kinds of things and paying attention to ho cw we produce,” says Raymer.

Just down the road, Sweet Creations co-owner Bianca Valeria says they’re not immune to those high prices. The bakery opened right before the pandemic, but was able to make it through the hardest months.

Valeria says they specialize in butter cream cakes. A key ingredient is butter, which is also seeing higher prices. She says they’ve had to raise some of their prices to help overcome the costs.

“Increasing prices on cakes is not too easy just to do one and two dollar increase that you can see in different places, because this is more than just increasing a dollar. That wont really do for us, so its been difficult, but we’re getting the best out of it as possible,” says Valeria.

The bakery uses pounds of butter daily, which can really add up.

“We make cakes out of butter cream and that’s all we use for the cakes. We don’t do the regular icing. So that’s a really big impact there, the butter for sure,” says Valeria.

According to a USDA report released this month, recent record high egg prices have begun to soften. But it says it will take time before consumers will see those prices drop.