KFC has temporarily closed a number of stores across the UK as a result of chicken shortages caused by widespread delivery issues. A total of 562 KFC outlets remained shut following a weekend of disruption that peaked on Sunday night at 646 closures, according to The Guardian. The shortage has led leading tabloid newspaper The Sunto headline with "Kentucky Fried Closed" this morning, amid huge media interest.
KFC published a list of only 338 of its 900 stores that were still open on Monday night. Many were offering a limited menu and restricted opening hours.
The popular fast-food chain said the store closures were a result of “teething problems” with new delivery partner DHL. More than 550 of the restaurant chain's 900 outlets remain closed, with 338 still open.
Some of the outlets that remain open are only offering a limited menu and cut their opening hours as a result of the logistical issues.
“The chicken just crossed the road, just not to our restaurants,” the international company said in a statement.
“We've brought a new delivery partner onboard, but they've had a couple of teething problems – getting fresh chicken out to 900 restaurants across the country is pretty complex.”
Until last Tuesday, KFC's chicken was delivered by South African-owned distribution group Bidvest, which describes itself as “the leading supplier of logistical and supply chain solutions to the UK hospitality and restaurant sector.”
But after the change in the contract, many of the food giant's outlets began running out of chicken products.
“We won't compromise on quality, so no deliveries have meant some of our restaurants are closed and others are operating a limited menu or shortened hours,” the company added.
“We know that this might have inconvenienced some of our customers you over the last few days – we're sorry about that.”
A new three-way partnership between KFC, DHL and foodservice logistics provider QSL was announced in November last year.
DHL had promised to “rewrite the rule book” and set a new benchmark for delivering fresh produce to KFC in a sustainable way, calling the move “groundbreaking,” according to The Telegraph.
DHL blamed “operational issues” for some deliveries in recent days being “incomplete or delayed.”
“We are working with KFC and our partners to rectify the situation as a priority and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused,” they said.
KFC has not given notice of when operations are likely to go back to normal and did not give an exact number of how many stores had been affected.
