Food lovers in France are getting their prayers answered with the launch of 24-hour cheese dispensers.
There are currently artisanal cheese vending machines spread across France, appearing in train stations, town squares and motorway service stops.
These machines are open day and night to satisfy cravings 24 hours a day.
Refrigeration inside prevents the pungent smell of many cheeses from spreading to the surrounding area.
It comes as makers of hundreds of controlled designations of origin (AOC), the protected regional cheese types, look for new ways to bring their products to consumers.
Food lovers rejoice as 24-hour cheese dispensers open across France (Pictured: French cheesemaker Fabien Picard carries a paddle of cheese to fill his vending machine at Bourg en Bresse train station, al eastern France)
Vending machines are appearing in railway stations, town squares and motorway services (Pictured: Fabian Picard, director of the La fromager dairy, fills his vending machine with cheese in Bourg en Bresse, eastern France)
The automatic dispensers are refrigerated, protecting the surrounding area from wafting odors (pictured: cheesemonger Fabien Picard fills his cheese vending machine in Bourg en Bresse, eastern France).
Agricultural cooperatives and small producers are coming together to finance the often expensive machines.
It is the latest in a trend of automatic food dispensers that include pizzas, oysters, muscles, sausages, eggs and butter.
The number of fresh bread dispensers, usually baguettes, is also increasing.
Since France is home to so many popular cheeses, including Camembert, Roquefort, and Reblochon, this was a logical next step.
These vending machines initially took off during the pandemic, because customers could serve themselves without needing to put on masks or enter stores.
Regional officials now encourage distributors to promote quality local products.
They are especially appreciated in rural areas, where the closure of local outlets is forcing people to drive further to do their shopping.
The Doubs Cooperative was one of the first stores to have one outdoors and offers everything from comté to morbier for the perfect last-minute cheese board.
Cheese dispensers are the latest in a trend of machines selling pizzas, oysters, muscles, cold cuts and fresh bread (pictured: cheesemonger Fabien Picard fills his cheese vending machine at a train station in France)
These vending machines initially took off during the pandemic, because customers could serve themselves without needing to put on masks or enter stores.
Famous local cheeses from certain regions of France include Camembert, Roquefort and Reblochon (pictured: Fabien Picard prepares his delivery to fill his cheese vending machine)
Fabien Picard (pictured) said: “You can simply spin the carousel, choose your cheese and pay with a bank card before collecting your purchase.”
In the eastern department of Ain, Fabian Picard, director of the La fromager dairy, said people were surprised to discover its automated supply of tomme du Jura, comté and other types at its dispensers on the highway and on the Bourg bus. en-Bresse. season.
He told Agence France-Presse: “You can simply spin the carousel, choose your cheese and pay with a bank card before collecting your purchase.”
The cheese, which costs a little more than in stores, is supplied once a day.
In Varaville, in the coastal department of Calvados, in Normandy, a cheese factory supplies a machine with camambert and liverwort.
In the high Alps of Haute-Savoie, a cheesemonger supplies his distributor 24 hours a day with reblochon, tomme and raclette, local specialties.
Mathieu Goguet, co-director of La Boîte ô Fromages in the Calvados region, said his company had been making home deliveries during the pandemic.
He told Radio France: ‘We realized that the people we delivered to would not travel 15 kilometers to come and shop in the store. But they could pass through a dispenser.