Live crab vending machine makes us think there could be better uses for vending machines (video)

Yes, it's true: an entrepreneur in Nanjing, China, has stocked a vending machine with Shanghai Hairy Crabs. The delicacy (if anything with "hairy" in its name could be a delicacy) is kept at 5° Celsius, where it hibernates until it is sold for ¥120-600 (between $1.40 and $7.30), which is apparently a thirty percent markdown from retail. Even the Japanese media seem to find this one peculiar -- and this is a country that sells liquor, pornography, and Maine lobsters in its vending machines. See it for yourself in the video after the break.

Update: Our man on the scene in China (actually, he's in London, but whatever) noticed a few additional details in the video, including the fact that the prices in Chinese Yuan range from ¥10 to ¥50, and that the owner of the machine offers a pretty sweet guarantee: if your crab is dispensed in a "dead" condition, you get three as compensation. Sounds more than fair to us!