Vending Machine Of The Week (2)

In 1867 Simeon Denham was awarded a British patent (no 706) for creating the first fully-automatic vending machine. It dispensed stamps. The range of goods that are now available from vending machines is gradually increasing. In 2019 I reported on German sausage vending machines and recently Penguin have announced the reintroduction of book vending machines, starting at Exeter station.

In November 2022 a vending machine with a difference was installed at Tazawako Station in Semboku, Japan, offering bear meat. The machine dispenses meat from wild bears “locally captured” in the mountains, thanks to the efforts of a local hunting club, and then processed in an abattoir. To secure a chunk weighing 250 grammes will cost 2,200 yen, about £13, and is proving popular with travellers alighting at the station, selling between ten and fifteen packs a week. Supplies often run out as the restaurant behind the idea, Soba Goro, struggles to meat demand.

Bear meat consumption is highest in northern Japan, where it is sold in cans and even as instant curry. It has a slightly gamey flavour that some have likened to venison, and is often served in stew. “Bear meat tastes clean, and it doesn’t get tough,” a Soba Goro spokesperson said.  

Think I will give that one a miss.