# The egg demand calendar > Egg demand runs on the calendar: it builds through the fall into Thanksgiving and Christmas baking, peaks again at Easter, and eases through the summer. Supply runs year-round while demand concentrates, which is why the fourth quarter tends to be structurally tight and prices firm into the holidays. _Updated Jul 13, 2026._ Egg demand follows the calendar more than almost any other grocery staple, and the pattern is worth knowing because supply does not follow it. Demand builds through the fall as holiday baking ramps, runs hardest around Thanksgiving and Christmas, comes back strong at Easter in the spring, then settles through the summer. Hens, meanwhile, lay year-round on a schedule of their own. That mismatch is the engine of egg-price seasonality. ## The fall and winter baking pull The heaviest stretch is the fourth quarter. Thanksgiving and Christmas baking put eggs into pies, cookies and holiday recipes all at once, so grocery and foodservice demand climbs from October through December. It lands at an awkward time for supply: shorter winter days naturally trim how much hens lay, so the biggest demand of the year meets a slightly smaller flock output. That is why the fourth quarter is structurally the tight season, and why a supply shock in the fall or winter hits the price harder than the same shock in June. ## Easter, the spring peak Easter is the other pillar. Demand for eggs to dye, bake and cook for the holiday surges in the weeks ahead of it, and because Easter moves around the calendar the peak shifts with it each year. Prices commonly firm into Easter and then ease once it passes and spring lay picks up with the longer days. After Easter the year's demand generally softens toward the summer lull. ## The shoulders in between Between the big holidays the calendar still has a rhythm. Back-to-school in late summer nudges demand up as households and school kitchens restock, a modest bump ahead of the fourth-quarter climb. Foodservice runs steadier than the grocery aisle, so restaurant and institutional buying smooths some of the retail swing, and it leans on loose eggs and egg products more than on cartons. The through-line is that demand has peaks and quieter shoulders while the flock lays on a biological schedule that barely knows what month it is. ## Reading it on the chart [Chart: National white large shell egg price (loose, ¢/dozen)](https://the-scramble.com/national/large-white) ([data](https://the-scramble.com/national/large-white.md) — chart image: https://the-scramble.com/charts/national/large-white/chart.png) The chart above is the benchmark across the seasons, and the shape tends to repeat. Look for firmness building into the winter holidays and again into Easter, with softer stretches in between. The seasonal pattern is the baseline. A bird-flu year overwrites it, which is why a normal calendar read only takes you so far when supply is the story. Set the season against the inventory and bird-flu picture to see which force has the upper hand in any given week. The Scramble shows the USDA benchmark through the demand calendar as published. The seasonal pattern describes the past, it is not a forecast. ## Related data + guides - [National benchmark price](https://the-scramble.com/national/large-white) - [US shell egg inventory](https://the-scramble.com/inventory/national) - [Why retail lags wholesale](https://the-scramble.com/guides/from-hen-to-shelf-why-retail-lags-wholesale) --- Canonical URL: https://the-scramble.com/guides/the-egg-demand-calendar