A man was left gutted after discovering his posh Burford Brown eggs had been swapped out for cheaper alternatives in a new middle-class crime sweeping Britain. Andrew Evans, 32, says wife Izzy Evans, 31, bought a six-pack of what she thought were Clarence Court eggs from a Sainsbury's in North London last Monday (12/10). But as she was in a rush she did not open the box to check what was inside.
The next morning, Andrew opened the box to make scrambled eggs on toast - only to find six plain white eggs staring back at him. The software engineer now believes he has fallen victim to a very middle class crime. He claims his eggs were swapped out by another shopper in the supermarket who wanted to get away with paying less for the premium product by carrying out a 'carton con'.
Social contract degradation
Andrew said: "It's a sign that people are unhappy with the prices of items in the shop, but it's also a lack of respect for fellow community members. It does feel a like a bit of a degradation of the social contract."
It is not the first time the tactic has been mooted as a 'new' way of shoplifting. In February this year, Instagram user Anita Wong noticed her Clarence Court Burford Buff eggs had been swiped. She claims a Waitrose worker told her that it appeared a customer had decanted the eggs into a less expensive box in the store, according to reports.
It comes as unsuspecting customers have reported coming home to find their premium eggs swapped with cheaper alternatives. In April, it prompted Sainsbury's to threaten to prosecute light-fingered thieves committing this crime. The supermarket giant told its customers: "Footage of shoplifting will be passed to the police. We prosecute all shoplifters."
Price difference and quality checks
While a six-pack of large Burford Browns eggs costs £3.60, or 60p per egg, Sainsbury's own brand costs just £2.10, or 35p each. Upon cracking the egg alongside a genuine Burford Brown which he had left over in another box, Andrew noticed the yolk was more yellow and less orange than the real thing.
According to Clarence Court, their hens eat a maize-enriched diet which is formulated to include wheat, sunflower, seashell, soya, paprika, and marigold – which is responsible for the yolk's 'golden' colour. Andrew says he has a 'bit of a bias towards brown eggs' and he had hoped that paying more would mean his eggs come from a 'better environment for the chickens'.
He added: "I like to spend a bit more money for eggs rather than getting the cheapest ones. They just seem a bit higher quality. In terms of taste, I honestly don't know if I can tell the difference, I've been buying them for a while now, so it's been a while since I've had other eggs. It might be a bit of a placebo, but it feels a bit good having that orange yolk."
How to spot fakes and retailer response
To avoid becoming a victim to carton conning, shoppers can check whether their Clarence Court eggs are the real thing by looking for the distinctive crown logo printed on the shell of the egg itself.
A Sainsbury's spokesperson said: "We're sorry to hear about this customer's experience, which appears to be the result of someone swapping these eggs in store. We would be happy to issue a refund to the customer and have asked for their contact details to arrange this."
A Clarence Court spokesperson offered a voucher to the affected customers. They said: "Following completion of investigation into one of our Burford Brown packs containing white shell eggs, we can confirm the eggs photographed hold a code which is not ours. Therefore, it is impossible for our Burford Brown egg pack to have left our site holding the eggs Andrew and Izzy Evans have ended up with."
