Wholesale prices for large eggs hit $5.57 per dozen in the Midwest in December, which was up 150% from a year ago, according to commodity data firm Expana. Prices were even higher in California, reaching a record high of $8.85 per dozen.

Egg prices are soaring, breaking new records as the bird flu outbreak grows. Why it matters: No food item has been as much of an inflation poster child like eggs, and their prices often give a clue about the economic environment.

The shortfall has sent egg prices everywhere rocketing in a trend that has accelerated during the holidays. At Pete’s, co-owner Lindsay Timpson said the restaurant paid $43 for a case of eggs a year ago. As of Monday, they were paying $128. In a six-day stretch in December, prices rose 35%.

Bird flu outbreaks are driving up egg prices and affecting availability. Experts say the spread among wild birds makes the outbreak harder to control.

Egg prices across northern Nevada have soared in recent weeks, mirroring a recent nationwide trend driven by holiday demand and the avian flu.A News 4-Fox 11 cr

Bird flu continues to play a part in higher egg prices in California. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, in a Dec. 27 report, said a dozen large shell eggs in the state rose to $8.97.

California egg prices continue to climb due to ongoing outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza. December's statewide average for a dozen large shell eggs reached nearly $9, per a U.S. Department of Agriculture report.