Thieves are pinching posh eggs by placing them in packing containers of economy-range ones earlier than heading to the checkout to keep away from shelling out additional.
Anita Wong, 53, found the ruse after buying a £4.50 ten-pack of eggs from her native Waitrose.
Upon opening the packaging, the Ealing resident discovered the premium eggs had been swapped for a less expensive, commonplace selection.
A loyal buyer of the Wiltshire-based model, Wong famous she particularly pays a premium for his or her excessive welfare requirements and signature deep-yellow yolks.
The Wiltshire firm marks every egg with a Clarence Court docket crown, making them straightforward to recognise.
It was Wong’s daughter who raised the alarm after realising the eggs have been lacking their distinctive brand and appeared smaller than standard, telling her: ‘Mum, these appear like regular eggs.’
Wong then searched the web for the serial quantity stamped on every of the eggs and located they have been the usual British selection.
In a video posted on Instagram, she stated: ‘That is what’s occurring in plenty of supermarkets in the intervening time.
Wong stated she particularly pays a premium for his or her excessive welfare requirements and signature deep-yellow yolks
‘The costlier eggs, individuals are really decanting these into the inexpensive egg packing containers and shopping for them so the people who find themselves shopping for the costlier eggs are unwillingly shopping for the inexpensive eggs.’
The previous intensive care nurse, who has retrained as a nutritionist, stated when she went again to the shop to complain concerning the incident, a member of workers instructed her the issue was not unusual.
‘The gross sales assistant stated she thinks somebody has swapped the contents and paid for the usual egg field,’ she stated.
The most affordable six-pack of Waitrose Important free-range white eggs prices £1.50 and the costliest six-pack of Clarence Court docket eggs prices £4.55.
The shoplifting trick was reported as egg costs proceed to stay excessive in what has been referred to as ‘egg-flation’, as Wong added that consumers ought to verify the eggs contained in the packing containers earlier than shopping for them.
Farmers beforehand attributed the fee enhance to hen flu outbreaks that thinned flocks and created provide shortages.
With egg-swapping resurfacing simply because it did in 2024, there are rising fears that merchandise will need to be packaged extra securely.
Retail crime has hit a breaking level as a theft happens virtually each minute with out consequence.
The Met Police noticed offences skyrocket by 165 per cent between 2021 and 2024, reaching a complete of 90,000 reported crimes
As of December 2025, greater than 800 shoplifting circumstances a day are shelved on account of an absence of suspects.
The disaster is especially acute in London; the Met Police noticed offences skyrocket by 165 per cent between 2021 and 2024, reaching a complete of 90,000 reported crimes.
With the annual price to retailers hitting £1.8billion, Labour has pledged to deal with the ‘epidemic’, as outlets are more and more pressured to spend their very own margins on enhanced safety measures.
Nevertheless, shoplifting throughout England and Wales continues to be on the rise, with thefts reported to police at a report excessive within the yr to June.
A spokesman from the Affiliation of Comfort Shops stated: ‘It is symptomatic of the issues retailers are going through, however this type of factor occurs quite a bit.
‘It is just like individuals having six bottles of wine and scanning a budget one six instances, however taking 5 costly bottles.
‘Or scanning a Sunday newspaper, figuring out that there isn’t any weight restrict because it’s totally different each week, and placing different gadgets on there with it.
‘Something that has worth is now a goal for thieves.’
In response to Wong’s video, Instagram customers recounted their experiences of seeing thieves swapping eggs within the aisles of most British supermarkets.
One stated: ‘I used to be in Asda and noticed somebody do that with fundamental and free vary eggs, and I instructed her that what she was doing was flawed and unfair to the one that could be buying the free vary eggs and getting fundamental eggs. She simply laughed at me. I instructed an worker, however by the point she went over, the lady had gone.’
One other added: ‘I’ve seen somebody do that at Sainsbury’s in Abbey Wooden. I did not say something. I simply gave safety the data. When that individual went to pay. They have been intercepted by safety and administration.’
