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Eggs – a nutritious and affordable source of protein.

Or they were. The cost of a box of eggs has been rocketing around the world. And in some places, where it’s long been common to start the day on an egg – supplies are under pressure.

In this programme, Ruth Alexander explores the challenges egg producers are facing - including what can be done about the seemingly ever-present threat of avian influenza.

She speaks to Amanda Mdodana, a poultry farmer in Mpumalanga, South Africa; Phillip Crawley, a poultry farmer in Leicestershire, UK; Mark Jacob, poultry and egg economist in Arkansas, US; and Professor Munir Iqbal, head of the Avian Influenza Virus group at the Pirbright Institute, UK.

If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk

(Picture: A chicken standing next to an egg. Credit: Getty/Â鶹Éç)

Producer: Elisabeth Mahy