Japan's countryside unstaffed honor system vegetable stands may have provided a blueprint for companies hoping to make no-contact sales smoother during the pandemic. We've recently seen Nestle install unstaffed Kit Kat and coffee stations, and JR East introduce AI-powered food stations for late night snackers.

Those looking for an extra fluffy loaf of bread made with fresh cream now have another option for contactless purchase, as Kobe's Funwari bakery will be setting up its first unstaffed specialty bread store.

Funwari is hailed as Japan's first "fresh cream shokupan specialty store", with shokupan being fluffy white bread, usually served as breakfast toast. What sets Funwari's shokupan apart from others is that it is that its made using 47% fresh cream from Hokkaido, a delicacy of Japan's most northern island, that gives it an extra fluffy texture and rich and mellow flavor.

Now Funwari has installed an unstaffed store that offers a variety of their delicious fluffy loaves, with no need to press any buttons to pay for your purchases. While the money box system relies on exact change, it minimizes contact and allows for a quick pickup purchase of your preferred bread.

Funwari also claims that in addition to adding shelf life to the loaves, the freezers they use also preserve the umami, aroma, and moisture of the freshly baked bread.

The unstaffed antenna shop is currently open at Piazza Kobe.