THE National Trust for Scotland is looking for homes for thousands of chocolate eggs left over after its Easter egg hunts were cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

More than 30,000 boxed eggs were delivered to the Trust by Cadbury for its egg hunts before the lockdown began.

Culzean Castle and Brodick Castle both donated their eggs to local foodbanks.

Eggs also went to community groups and charities such as Fullarton Connexions in Irvine, homelessness charity Seascape and 10:10 Trust in Ayr.

Across Scotland around half the eggs have been donated and other groups can contact NTS if they can use the treats – which have a use-by date of July.

If stacked on top of each other, it’s estimated the eggs would have been three times the height of the tallest Trust mountain.

Mark Bishop, of the NTS, said: “It was absolutely heartbreaking to have to cancel our Easter egg hunts this year and not be able to welcome the tens of thousands of people who we usually see.

“As well as being our biggest weekend of the year, Easter marks the start of the season for many of our properties but given the unprecedented global situation, everything had to be put on hold. In the midst of all this, though, we saw that some good could come out of the situation.

“Thirty thousand Easter eggs don’t eat themselves and our operations teams have been finding places for them to go.

“It’s wonderful that so many have gone to the NHS and to other groups and organisations doing incredible work in our communities.”

Last year 32,000 people took part in the trust’s Easter egg hunts and the 2020 event at 41 sites across Scotland had been expected to be even bigger.

The remaining eggs are currently being kept in storage. Suggestions of organisations which could take the chocolate can be made through the NTS social media pages.

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