The El Nino phenomenon isn’t just drying up water sources and driving up global temperatures, it is also affecting egg production in the Philippines, the Philippine Egg Board Association said Thursday.

Egg Board president Francis Uyehura said the intense heat has led to reduced appetites for chickens, which result in fewer and smaller eggs.

“Generally, lahat ng farm producer ay nakakaranas na ng problema sa sobrang init. Number one na epekto ng sobrang init ay ‘yung paghina ng pagkain ng manok na resulta ng pagbaba ng egg production at pagliit ng sizes. Nagkakaroon ng imbalance, mas marami yung maliliit,” he said in a TeleRadyo Serbisyo interview.

He warned that chicken mortality has gone up as a result of the extreme heat, which is more pronounced in the northern part of the country.

“The intense heat will not have an effect on the nutritional value of the egg, the problem is the eggs are getting smaller. If before, farmers are getting large or XL eggs, now there are more small or even extra small eggs,” he said.

Poultry farmers are now facing a surplus of smaller size eggs, which are now being sold at lower prices.

He noted egg consumption has also dropped due to fewer events during the hot months as well as the rise in the number of canceled school days because of the heat.

Medium-sized eggs are currently benchmarked at P4.50-P5.40 per piece, depending on the area, Uyehura said.

He pointed out that “small” eggs may be classified as medium because eggs are graded by weight. “Kaya meron itlog na maliit pero mabigat at malaki na itlog pero magaan,” he said.

In Blumentritt Market in Manila, one of the biggest egg retailers Jim Regine Delos Reyes confirmed that the prices of larger eggs increased by at least P10 to P20 per tray.

“Mas konti po ung supply ng mga large, XL [extra large] and jumbo kaya matataas pa rin po yung price natin sa malalaki. Yung ngayon pong mas mainit, mas marami pong pino-produce na mas maliliit na itlog kaya bumaba po yung price niya, pero for the bigger size mas mahal po,” according to Delos Reyes.

(The supply of large, XL and jumbo-sized eggs has decreased leading to higher prices for these types of eggs. The supply of smaller eggs has increased, which means these have become cheaper.)

Delos Reyes is the owner of Damboo’s Egg Store in Blumentritt and she is the 3rd generation of egg dealers from her family.

According to PAGASA weather specialist Dr. John Manalo, the El niño phenomenon and the scorching heat affect even livestock and poultry farms.