TESCO has said it will lift the restrictions it placed on the sale of packs of fresh eggs in its stores from 2 August.

The retailer introduced a three-pack limit in November 2022 after profitability in the egg sector saw a significant decline in the national flock and shortages on many supermarket shelves.

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As our most recent egg market report shows, the sector has been staging a tentative recovery over the past nine months as producer returns have improved.

But feed markets remain volatile – notably with the collapse of the Black Sea corridor pushing up ration costs once again.

Tesco also said it would provide “a further £10m of additional support for the egg sector” and recommit to only offering shell eggs from UK farms. It also said the aim of 100% cage-free eggs by 2025 remained in place.

Additional payments

The retailer said this payment to suppliers would help to cover additional costs of “handling, processing and egg production, including any increases in feed for farmers”.

“Tesco will continue to work with its suppliers to ensure the additional investment gets passed to farmers as quickly as possible,” it added.

Dominic Morrey, Tesco Commercial Director for Fresh said: “We’re really pleased to be able to provide a further package of financial support to our UK egg suppliers and producers.

Conditions

“The sector has faced some very tough conditions over the past 18 months, including increases to inputs such as feed and energy, as well as the avian flu outbreak, so we hope this support alleviates some of these challenges.

“As conditions begin to ease, we’re also able to remove the buying restrictions we’ve had in place on shell eggs since November last year.

“Customers can be reassured we also remain 100% British on all our shell eggs, with our five-year contracts with our suppliers now well underway.”