The price of eggs shoots up in July; blame it on libido!

Did you notice that the price of eggs shot up in July or that that there were less eggs in the market? The Nairobian asked around, and the reasons veered between speculation, experience and, wait for this, sex and Christmas!
Mzee James Waithaka, a poultry farmer and trader, believes that egg prices shoot up when it gets cold because the weather affects eggs production in poultry farms. 

“In the month of June and July which are mostly associated with cold weather the price of eggs goes up. This is because this kind of weather affects egg production. For example, in a bunch of 20 chickens you will find that only 15 are laying eggs. The scarcity of eggs is what pushes the price to go high,” explains Mzee Waithaka. 

Charles Kibe, another chicken farmer, believes the birds inexplicably stop producing eggs in July forcing farmers to avoid making losses by hiking prices to carter for chicken feed.
“There is never an oversupply of eggs in July. Most of the time, sales go down even though the price of eggs shoots up,” says Kibe. 

Geoffrey Kimani, a chicken trader lays the blame on sex.
“A lot of sex goes on in July because of the cold. People have this notion that eggs give people joto (libido) and that’s why they buy them in trays. This demand creates scarcity of eggs in the market,” says Kimani. 
But Dr Watson Messo Odwako, a veterinarian, says, it is about farmers forgetting that there is life after the Christmas season. 

“Egg poultry farmers stop placing new flocks in the festive month of December as they concentrate on festivities. Come January and February, they don’t place again because all income is directed in paying school fees and tilling land for the planting season.

“So the period between December and February, is lost. If these birds were to be placed at this time, they would get to peak egg production in the June-July period. This doesn’t happen and we end up with low egg production in July, and a relative surge in demand,” Messo told The Nairobian.