The Agriculture Department will invest up to $1 billion to curb this crisis and make eggs affordable again," Rollins wrote in an op-ed.

Rollins is just the second woman to head the agency. Ann Veneman of California was sworn in as the 27th Secretary of Agriculture in 2001 and served in George W. Bush's cabinet during his first term.

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins confirms those payments will be released before the March 21 current deadline in an exclusive interview with Farm Journal on Thursday morning. She also outlined the timing of the $1 billion just announced to combat avian flu.

Avian flu helped drive up the price of a dozen eggs to nearly $5.00. That's a 53% increase year-to-year. Because of the virus, millions of chickens have had to be put down.

Ms. Rollins wants to repeal California’s Proposition 12 animal welfare law, but opposition is growing from a clean-eating, carnivore diet type of

The U.S. will look to import more eggs as it responds to an ongoing outbreak of bird flu that has egg prices surging more than 50% from a year ago.