As Egg Prices Peaked, 280,000 Vanished Off A Freight Truck—How?

I’m dedicating the newsletter this week to one of the best stories I’ve read in a long time. Check out the Washington Post investigations team’s deep dive on “The Great Egg Heist”—or what happened when 280,000 brown eggs from America’s top producer Cal-Maine were stolen off a freight truck. A ransom note followed.

I won’t spoil this twisting tale for you, but I’ll point out that the story also explains how Cal-Maine became a target while profiting from the sudden spike in the price of eggs that turned the refrigerator staple into one of the hottest luxury items in grocery stores nationwide. In the days leading up to the theft, the U.S. Department of Justice even began investigating Cal-Maine on farmers’ allegations of price-gouging. As the company blamed price hikes on the impact of avian flu outbreaks decreasing overall supply, the Washington Post points out that in 2022, Cal-Maine didn’t lose a single bird to avian flu and still reported quarterly profits that December that were 169 times higher than the year prior.

I’m still waiting for Cal-Maine to return my many requests for an interview with the chairman and son-in-law of the company’s founder, or the founder’s four daughters. They had controlled the publicly traded company through a majority stake for years, but sold a significant amount of shares in April. Their entire share sale plan is estimated to have a value of about $500 million.

I hope you are enjoying all summer has to offer, and, if like millions of Americans, you’re in the throes of a heatwave, stay cool and hydrate!

— Chloe Sorvino

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Featured Story

The Great Egg Heist

From the Washington Post: 280,000 eggs disappeared from America’s top producer. Then came a ransom note.

The Feed

Public Land Grab: After widespread bipartisan opposition to the federal government selling some 250 million acres of public land in the West to raise funds as part of the Trump Administration’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, it’s looking like the conservationists could win. On Monday, the Senate’s Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough ruled out the sales, according to Politico’s E&E News. But the fight is not over: Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Mike Lee (R-Utah) has vowed to alter his plan.

IPO Watch: Once Upon A Farm, the organic baby food brand cofounded by Jennifer Garner and former Annie’s CEO John Foraker, has confidentially filed to go public, according to a report in Reuters. The Goldman Sachs- and JPMorgan-backed transaction could value the business at around $1 billion and is a good sign for markets that have faced uncertainty and a tepid supply of new listings.

Preventing The Next Pandemic: I also urge you to read a call to action on avian flu and the risks it poses to human health from Danielle Nierenberg, cofounder of Food Tank and a Forbes contributor. “The time to prevent and contain this virus is right now,” writes Nierenberg. “There’s a very real possibility that avian flu could pose a greater threat in the future, and we can’t be caught unprepared. The correct course of action involves vaccination, investments in public health, and global collaboration—all of which appear to be under threat given recent U.S. policy developments.” Ultimately, she declares: “As Covid-19 made abundantly clear, viruses don’t stop at national borders. Keeping the public healthy and preparing for pandemic risks simply must be more important than politicking. And when we’re heading in the wrong direction, there is a moral obligation to sound the alarm—and to illuminate a better path forward.”

Field Notes

I’ve been spending some time on Cape Cod, which means I had to stop at The Seafood Shanty in Bournedale, Massachusetts right before the bridge. I love this 30-year-plus institution’s fried scallops and homemade onion rings, and, I have to say, I personally think the lobster roll might be the best—and the best value—of anywhere around the Cape. Pro tip: This old-school seafood shack piles on the lobster so high that you can get two lobster rolls out of their $32.95 meal (with fries!), just order yourself an extra roll.

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