JD Wetherspoon PLC (LSE:JDW) has been forced to make changes to its breakfast menu due to a shortage of eggs caused by the recent wave of avian flu, as well as heatwave-related poultry deaths.
Struggling to get enough eggs to meet demand in many of its roughly 800 pubs, Wetherspoons is offering other options, including hash browns, sausages and onion rings in its breakfast meals.
Wetherspoons spokesperson Eddie Gershon confirmed the reasons for the changes when speaking to The Sun, reassuring that the issues were not just limited to the pub chain.
“We can confirm that there are temporary issues with egg supplies at some Wetherspoon pubs, due to the current impact of Avian flu on egg production," he told The Sun.
A shortage of eggs has hit many in the food and services sector, caused by the current wave of bird flu which has seen thousands of poultry killed and many more locked indoors to stem the spread of the disease.
Speaking to The Mirror, farmer Steve Childerhouse described the current outbreak of bird flu as the “worst ever” in the UK.
Record temperatures in the summer also saw thousands of poultry killed due to heat exhaustion, with the knock-on effect exacerbating the current situation.
These supply issues come after a difficult summer for Wetherspoons, which has seen pre-pandemic footfall return but also increased labour, food and repair costs.
Due to the rising costs, the pub chain has had to streamline, with recent announcements seeing 39 of its pubs put up for sale, alongside hikes to beer prices in many premises.
Wetherspoons has also been hit with supply issues in the past, running out of ketchup during the Eat Out to Help Out scheme in 2020, as well as some pubs running out of beer last year.