Russia is running out of eggs. Vladimir Putin thinks the reason is…

The price Russians pay for eggs has surged amid reports of shortages in some regions, prompting criticism from President Vladimir Putin and government action to secure supplies of the staple ingredient that’s used in many favorite holiday dishes.

Egg prices have risen at a rate of more than 4% for four weeks in a row, according to Federal Statistics Service data. Since the start of the year, they have become 42% more expensive, according to Bloomberg calculations using that data.

Russian media have reported long lines of shoppers waiting to buy eggs in regions from Kuban in southern Russia to Novosibirsk, around 2,000 miles to the east in Siberia, an echo of Soviet-era food shortages. Retailers have also limited the quantity of eggs sold per person and have started to sell them individually to people unable to pay for a whole carton, according to those reports.

The spike in prices drives home the impact of Russian inflation on consumers’ pocketbooks, and is so acute that Putin was asked about it at his marathon news conference and live call-in event on Thursday. He criticized the government’s “failure” for taking steps too late to increase the supply.

The timing couldn’t be worse, coming ahead of both the New Year and Christmas holidays where many traditional dishes rely on eggs as a key ingredient, and the Russian leader’s campaign for a fifth term in presidential elections scheduled for March.

The government is trying to address the situation. Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov instructed regional officials to inspect egg producers, his office said in a statement on Telegram.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service has also proposed that businesses limit mark-ups on eggs to 5% until March, RBC news service reported earlier this month, citing the agency’s letter to retailers.

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Perhaps most significantly, the government on Wednesday approved a suspension of duties on imports of 1.2 billion eggs from so-called friendly countries. “This decision will help to balance the domestic egg market and ensure supply growth,” the Economy Ministry said in a statement.

Putin blamed the government for taking too long to lift the import levies.

“Imports weren’t opened in time for the needed amount,” he said in response to a question at his news conference on the price of eggs. “I regret and apologize in this regard,” he said, adding, “I promise the situation will be corrected soon.”

Russians have faced accelerated consumer inflation across a range of goods for much of this year. The central bank has repeatedly pointed to excess demand that is outpacing the country’s ability to expand supply, helping to fuel price growth that’s running at almost double its 4% target.

That may be part of what is happening with eggs. On the one hand, as many goods have become more expensive, Russians appear to be switching to cheaper, substitute products, sending demand for them soaring and driving up prices.

At the same time, according to data from the statistics service, egg production decreased in October from a year ago, and in the first 10 months of the year added only 1% annually.

That explanation was endorsed by Putin, who said at his news conference that demand for the “relatively cheap protein” increased, “but production volumes did not.”