KFC will increase menu prices for the third time in 2022

Fast food giant KFC will raise menu prices for the third time this year amid rising food prices and supply chain issues.

Drew O’Malley, managing director of Collins Foods, which has 261 KFC outlets across Australia and 23 Taco Bell stores, said the fast food retailer was thriving despite rising prices.

Mr O’Malley confirmed KFC customers were ‘likely to see more [price hikes] in the coming year” after earlier price increases in January and June of this year.

KFC Australia will raise menu prices for the third time this year amid rising food prices. Source: Getty

KFC diners should expect to pay around 1-2% more for their favorite menu items, according to Australian Financial Review.

That means KFC customers could pay an extra 6 cents per piece of chicken, or an extra 15 cents for a classic Zinger Burger once prices rise.

“We have to be careful not to stray too far from our consumers to erode the work that’s been done over the past decade,” O’Malley told a recent investor conference.

KFC will ‘keep value at the center of the customer call’

“As we anticipate a higher level of menu pricing than in the past…I must be careful to stress that this is exactly the environment we want to gain value,” he said.

“We will continue to keep value at the center of our customer appeal,” he assured customers.

While menu pricing is an important step in the fast food chain’s efforts to offset margin pressures, Mr O’Malley said the KFC brand has never been stronger in Australia.

KFC menu items on the table next to the drive-thru

Mr O’Malley said the KFC brand has never been stronger in Australia. Source: KFC Australia/Getty

He explained that despite inflation and cost-of-living pressures, KFC continues to strengthen, with same-store sales up 4.1% in the first seven weeks of the new fiscal year.

When asked when the third price increase would take effect, Mr O’Malley did not say.

KFC is replacing lettuce with cabbage on some menu items

The announcement comes just weeks after KFC made a controversial change to some menu items due to Australia’s current lettuce shortage.

KFC announced that a “temporary mix of lettuce and cabbage” would be used in some wraps and burgers at restaurants in NSW, Victoria, Queensland, ACT and Tasmania to tackle shortages.

Customer is holding KFC burger with lettuce

KFC Australia has told customers it is using a mix of lettuce and cabbage on all lettuce-containing products until further notice. Source: KFC

“We have hit a bit of an iceberg and are currently experiencing lettuce supply chain disruptions due to the impacts of recent flooding in Queensland and New South Wales,” read a post on the site. KFC website.

Australians have been hit by rising food prices this year, and the cost of living crisis is set to worsen – with Treasurer Jim Chalmers warning of inflation will reach 7% by the end of 2022.

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