A Fredericton shop specializing in local food might not be able to give ungraded eggs away for free, even if it wanted to.

Health inspectors recently ordered Real Food Connections to stop selling ungraded, free-range eggs from two small farms in Centreville earlier this month.

According to provincial regulations, farms with fewer than 200 hens can sell directly to customers or at farmers' markets, but don't qualify for the commercial inspection program.

Prince Edward Island has similar rules, but Mary Mermuys, a health store owner, got around the rules by selling egg cartons and giving the eggs away for free.

Levi Lawrence, the owner of Real Food Connections, said he's looking into Mermuys' idea so he can still deliver eggs to his customers.

But said he doesn't think it would work since there's a separate regulation in New Brunswick that prohibits him from having any ungraded eggs on his store premises.

New Brunswick's Department of Health said ungraded eggs are "not an approved food source."

Mermuys owns The Turning Point in Montague and said she has had little contact with government officials since she started giving the eggs away for free.

"As the months have gone by since last June, we're selling a lot more. We're going through a lot more eggs. The last letter we had from the Department of Agriculture after we sent in the last of the petition is that they're trying to work with some farmers who might be interested in setting up a small egg grading facility," she said.

Mermuys said 200 people have signed a petition supporting her endeavour.

Real Food Connections said it's looking for a way to sell the ungraded eggs.