Americans could soon find themselves scrambling to afford a carton of eggs because of the effects of avian flu. With 31 million laying hens slaughtered in a bid to stem the outbreak, the consequences of America’s biggest ever bird flu outbreak are quickly coming home to roost, and the American egg consumer is starting to feel the pinch.

The virus first hit a commercial flock of egg-laying chickens April 22, exactly a month ago. Since then, the industry has taken a massive hit, primarily in the northern Midwest where the biggest producers are located. Turkey farms were initially infected, but April remained a big year for the egg industry, with 8.1 billion eggs produced, over 7 billion of which landed on our plates. Americans are consuming more eggs per person than in any time in history, eating an average of 263 eggs each in 2014.

May is shaping up to be to be a rotten month. In the 30 days since the flu took hold, farmers have slaughtered more than a million chickens a day, and the cost of egg products is starting to rise. Brian Moscogiuri, a reporter with food market monitors Urner Barry, said the price for a dozen “breaker” eggs–the liquid eggs sold wholesale to restaurants and producers of things like mayonnaise and ice-cream–hit a record of $2.13 a dozen, up 238 percent since the flu began, when a dozen cost just 63 cents. Most of the flu-affected eggs are destined for egg products rather than supermarkets, but the price of retail eggs is also on the way up–with a dozen eggs retailing at $2.32 in the Midwest, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Americans are likely to shell out as much as $8 billion more for eggs and related products in 2015 than in 2014 as a result of the bird flu outbreak. And they’re not the only ones taking a beating. American eggs are produced by an ever-smaller basket of companies. Today, there are approximately 181 egg-producing companies with flocks of 75,000 hens or more. These companies represent about 99 percent of all the laying hens in the United States. In 1994, there were around 350 companies with flocks of 75,000 hens or more. In the 1970s, there were more than 10,000 commercial egg companies.

With the egg industry concentrated among fewer companies operating increasingly bigger flocks, an epidemic like this hits hard and fast. If the flu grips one hen-house, all the hens in neighbouring hen-houses must be slaughtered. One company, Post Holdings Inc., has seen 25 percent of its flock hit, forcing it to shut down some product lines and tell clients it can’t honor some supply contracts. Not every company is taking a shellacking, though. Companies like Missisippi-based Cal-Maine Foods, whose flocks are located in the south where avian flu has not yet taken hold, are watching their stock price soar as they fill the gap with healthy eggs at higher prices.