The Ministers of Finance and Agriculture signed an order raising the price of eggs by an average of 8.2 percent, beginning Monday. This means that the cost of one egg rose by an average of 7 agorot.
The Agriculture Ministry said that the rise reflected the increased cost of grain used for chicken feed.
What this means for the consumer is that a dozen extra-large eggs will now cost NIS 12.45 at retail stores. Large eggs will cost NIS 11.20 a dozen and medium-sized eggs will cost NIS 10 (approx. $2.79) a dozen.
What it means for the average Israeli family with four children is that breakfast or lunch, the most important meals in the Middle Eastern day, will cost a lot more; or perhaps, children will be eating a lot less protein in the new school year.
The cost of basic staples in general has skyrocketed in Israel over the past 12 months.
A Year Ago: The Battle of the Bread
Last summer, a 12.5 percent price hike was approved after a strike by the government-regulated Angel, Berman and Vadash bakeries left store shelves empty for days. The bakeries said they would not absorb the rise in production costs prompted by a rise in the price of wheat on the international market.
The bakeries then pressured the government to allow a second increase in the price of the basic staple in September, just in time for the Jewish holidays, again blaming an increase in the price of wheat on the international market.
They followed this demand with a third, citing a sharp increase in the cost of flour and electricity, which had spiked in tandem with higher oil prices. Eventually the government caved in and allowed a second, 15 percent rise in the cost of the basic staple.