A farm in North Yorkshire has decided to set up a new novelty way of selling eggs after it found its honesty box idea was being taken advantage of – an egg vending machine.
Aireyholme Farm in Great Ayton initially set up an honesty box during the Covid-19 pandemic to continue selling its free-range eggs.
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However, a small number of customers ended up taking advantage of the opportunity and stole many of the eggs without paying.
In an effort to find a new way of getting egg-celent eggs to their customers, the farm decided to find out more about egg vending machines they had heard about.
Beth Phalp, a member of the family that owns the farm, said they had to “travel quite far to see what they were like.”
They found the vending machines to be a much safer way to sell eggs and still allowed customers to buy them straight off the farm.
However, according to Ms Phalp, they are hoping to expand the vending machine further.
She said: “Hopefully it will expand further, we have sheep and cattle on the farm and we already run a holiday cottage, so we’re hoping over time we can expand the vending machine and maybe put more in it.”
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Ms Phalp said she was already aware of milk-vending machines and hopes she can sell more products via the new, modern, method.
The vending machine has had “a lot of interest” with quite a few new customers getting in touch to try and find out where the farm is.
See how the vending machine works below:
She added: “I think that’s quite a big thing now to try and reduce food miles and buy local and know exactly where the eggs are coming from because they can see the chickens walking around in the field.
“I think it’s a thing people really like and it should hopefully be quite busy, we’ve had a few people coming up and having a look and getting some eggs.”
The vending machine is currently located in a shepherd's hut just outside the farm that was built from scratch by Ms Phalp’s father.
She added: “We bought the vending machine in so it did all come set up already, but it’s more the advertising it and fine-tuning it.
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“Especially making sure it’s all running right, it’s been fairly easy to set up I would say, we’re sorting the card machine but that should still be up and running in the next couple of days.”
The vending machine is also a more secure way of selling the popular item.
Ms Phalp added: “You have to pay for the eggs before the box will open now, so obviously, hopefully, it will stop any thefts from it, because most of our customers are really honest, there’s only really the odd one.”
Concluding, Ms Phalp said the ultimate aim was to make “the most out of the food product” due to food prices and electric prices, “going through the roof.”
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