South Korea egg output falls after HPAI culls 11.3 million hens
Daily production drops below stable supply threshold
21 July 2026
1 minute read
By: South Korea's domestic egg production has fallen well below stable supply levels following a highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak in November 2025, according to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.
The culling of approximately 11.3 million laying hens severely reduced output, with daily production dropping to around 46 to 47 million eggs. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said a minimum of 50 million eggs per day is needed to achieve a stable supply-demand balance.
Culling at breeder farms, instances of wasting disease, frequent livestock movement restrictions and increasingly strict stocking-density regulations compounded the shortfall. Despite a year-on-year increase in the total number of laying hens, daily production continued to decline.
The ministry anticipates that chicks placed in spring will mature into laying hens by late July, allowing domestic production to gradually return to average levels from August.
