Egg Clearinghouse
Egg Clearinghouse, Inc. | |
 | |
| Abbreviation | ECI |
|---|---|
| Nickname | The Wall Street of Eggs |
| Founded at | St. Louis, Missouri |
| Headquarters | Dover, New Hampshire, U.S. |
| Services | Online marketplace for surplus eggs |
| Website | www |
The Egg Clearinghouse, Inc., also known as The Wall Street of Eggs or ECI,[1] is an American online marketplace for eggs surplus to existing contracts. It is exclusive to egg producers and commercial egg purchasers. The prices used on ECI, even though only surplus eggs are traded, underpin egg prices more broadly.
In 2026, the United States Department of Justice filed suit alleging that three egg producers colluded to raise egg prices on ECI. The producers settled the case with a joint payment of $3.3 million and a donation of 50 million eggs to food banks.
History
In the 1960s, egg prices in the United States were determined through market conditions and the nature of bids for eggs on the New York and Chicago mercantile exchanges. These prices were regional, not national; an egg price for New York would not apply in Los Angeles. But there were certain problems with this system, namely that the eggs used to determine these regional prices were not necessarily reflective of the broader egg trade in terms of sample size and of egg type.[2]
In April 1970, after being under scrutiny for monopolistic egg trading tendencies, the aforementioned exchanges exited the practice of egg trading at the behest of the Commodity Exchange Authority.[3][4][5] The market, up until then, was seen by the CEA and many farmers as vulnerable to manipulation. But the retreat of the exchanges, even while the egg trade there had been limited, gave way to a world without ways to trade or price eggs.[5][3]
Subsequently, in May 1971, Egg Clearinghouse was formed as per the recommendations of a congressionally-commissioned study effected by the CEA.[3][6] It saw trouble during its first three months, however, and so Raymond Delano, who had himself made earlier attempts to link agricultural products to markets, took the helm.[7][8][3] He then eliminated the hand-graded egg trade in favor of weighing egg cases, which saved time and thus allowed ECI to handle more egg trades in general; this righted the ECI ship.[3] ECI struggled again in the 1980s due to instability in the egg industry and saw new management in 1984.[6][9]
Through price discovery, it smoothed out egg prices.[8][10] This was made more efficient through the use of computers to held handle bids and pricing, which ECI pioneered; this also allowed traders to find counterparts more easily.[11][12]
ECI had its first offices in St. Louis, Missouri, but moved to Delano's basement in Durham, New Hampshire four months later.[7][4] Its board, at the time, included the founder of Cal-Maine, the largest U.S. egg producer.[1] By 1978, ECI was responsible in part for the supply of more than 4.2 million eggs a day.[4] In 2024, ECI helped supply more than 2.6 billion shell eggs and 39 million pounds of egg product.[1][13]
During the 2020s outbreak of bird flu, commercial consumers and producers turned to ECI to fill orders; both bought eggs on the platform to resell.[1]
Operations
Participants in ECI pay monthly dues; said participants comprise egg and egg product producers, packers, distributors, and brokers.[6] In 1978, these dues were less than fifty dollars.[12][3]
ECI and its data are crucial in setting egg prices; the results of its trades are public, while the prices of most eggs, being under private contract, are not.[1][14] The prices reported on ECI, along with data collected from egg industry parties and self-reported trades, is collected by Expana, a research firm formerly known as Urner Barry.[15][16] Expana, in turn publishes benchmark prices for eggs.[1][17] In addition, prices in private contracts are often based on the benchmarks.[14][17] Through this, prices on ECI effectively determine the market value of eggs.[17] There is, however, some doubt as to whether prices as they are calculated are truly free from manipulation given that participants in ECI are able to both buy and sell eggs, potentially affecting their prices. Then too the Expana method of price calculation is opaque.[16][6]
Through ECI, parties bid for and sell eggs without knowing each other's identities, which are only revealed after agreements are reached.[4][1][13] ECI collects a commission of one cent per dozen eggs traded.[1][13] Eggs available are from production surplus to existing contracts.[1][17] While that surplus is only a small part of the greater egg trade, ECI acts as a resource for parties in need of additional eggs to fulfill obligations.[1][17] This is the primary function of ECI; price discovery is secondary.[6]
Eggs and egg products traded on ECI are divided by region, type, color, and size.[6]
ECI is based in Dover, New Hampshire.[18][19] However, it is incorporated in Delaware and has its registered office there.[18] ECI's president as of 2026 is Alan Munroe, an experienced trader.[1]
Price fixing
In 2026, the United States Department of Justice filed suit in the Northern District of Iowa alleging that three egg producers, Hickman's Egg Ranch, Versova, and Cal-Maine, colluded to raise egg prices.[20][14][17] The mechanism of the manipulation was threefold: the producers would bid for eggs on ECI at a price above the market benchmark;[14] separately, they engaged each other in private egg trades at artificially high prices, which went into the benchmark calculation;[17] they also lobbied then-Urner Barry both to raise its benchmarks and to weigh their bids more in their analysis.[14]
The accused parties settled for $3.3 million and a collective donation of 50 million eggs to food banks.[14]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Thomas, Patrick (18 February 2025). "At the 'Wall Street of Eggs,' Demand Is Surging". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 14 July 2026. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- ↑ Faber, Frederic (February 1966). "Present and Alternative Methods of Pricing Eggs" (Report). USDA Economic Research Service. doi:10.22004/ag.econ.320814.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Corcoran, Daniel J. (23 March 1978). "Unscrambling the egg market across the US". The Boston Globe. p. 41.
- 1 2 3 4 D'Antonio, Michael (5 September 1978). "Clearinghouse For Egg Trades Proves Success". The Washington Post. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- 1 2 Sanderson, Veryl (30 January 1977). "Unscrambling the egg pricing system". The Des Moines Register. pp. 1F–2F. Second page in separate clipping.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Peterson, Hikaru Hanawa (December 2005). "Trading Behavior in a Marginal Organized Market". Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics. 30 (3). Western Agricultural Economics Association: 449–468. Retrieved 27 August 2026.
- 1 2 Kimball, Charlotte B. (February 17, 1979). "Mainer brings together egg buyers and sellers". Bangor Daily News. p. 37. Retrieved 6 August 2026.
- 1 2 Jones, Clayton (18 March 1979). "Laid in Georgia, scrambled in Seattle". The Ann Arbor News. p. E12.
- ↑ Maynard, Leigh J. (1997). "Price Discovery in the Egg Industry". Agricultural and Resource Economics Review. 26 (1). Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association: 23–30. doi:10.22004/ag.econ.31353. Retrieved 28 August 2026.
- ↑ "Instant sales: With new system, industry can put all its eggs in one computer". The Houston Post. 7 September 1979. pp. 8D.
- ↑ "Computer Could Boost Prices Farmers Receive". Green Bay Press-Gazette. 3 November 1978. pp. A12.
- 1 2 D'Antonio, Mike (23 July 1978). "The Good News From Egg City: A Mainer Shapes Up A Commodity Market". Maine Sunday Telegram. p. 33.
- 1 2 3 Nelson, Bernt (13 May 2026). "Declining Egg Prices Squeeze Farmers". Farm Bureau Intel. American Farm Bureau Federation. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Michaels, Dave; Thomas, Patrick (1 July 2026). "Inside the Egg Price-Fixing Scandal That Spiked American Grocery Bills". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 17 July 2026. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- ↑ "Complaint" (PDF), United States v. Cal-Maine (Court Filing), no. 5:26-cv-4060, Document 1, N.D.I.A., June 29, 2026, retrieved Aug 2, 2026 – via RECAP
- 1 2 Ahn, Jenny; Case-Levine, Julia; Mathur, Vibhor. "Cracking Big Egg: Why the Industry's Narrative Doesn't Add Up". Hunterbrook. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Levine, Matt (1 July 2026). "Egg Libor Was Also Manipulated". Bloomberg. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- 1 2 "Business Information". New Hampshire Department of State. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- ↑ "Contact Us". Egg Clearinghouse, Inc. Archived from the original on 3 July 2026. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
- ↑ "Justice Department Requires Egg Producers to End Coordinated Benchmark Manipulation that Artificially Inflated Prices Across the Country". United States Department of Justice. 30 June 2026. Archived from the original on 8 July 2026. Retrieved 14 July 2026.