Shortages Force KFC Australia To Use Cabbage Instead Of Lettuce For Burgers

Due to shortages of crucial ingredients, KFC has had to make menu adjustments yet again in Australia, Michelle Toh and Hilary Whiteman reported for CNN Business.

Photo Insert: KFC locations all over Australia will be affected by the move, which is expected to affect items like Zinger Burgers and Crunch Twister wraps.

The company posted a notice on its local website this week telling customers it would add cabbage to some of its products because lettuce crops around the country had been destroyed by recent floods.

"We're using a lettuce and cabbage blend on all products containing lettuce until further notice," it said, citing a shortage following high waters in New South Wales and Queensland.

KFC locations in those states, as well as Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory, and Tasmania, will be affected by the move, which is expected to affect items like Zinger Burgers and Crunch Twister wraps.

Customers who do not want the substitution can opt out, according to the chain.

Food producers all across the world are dealing with various shortages as a succession of problems, including a pandemic-related labor scarcity, bad weather, and Russia's war with Ukraine, continue to reduce or delay supplies.

KFC Australia is out of chicken, and McDonald's Japan has put a cap on French fry sales. KFC in Australia even had trouble obtaining its most critical ingredient: fresh chicken earlier this year.

Because of personnel shortages due to COVID-19, it temporarily removed various items off the menu at select sites around the country.

McDonald's in Japan was likewise forced to temporarily halt the sale of medium and large quantities of fries due to delays in potato imports to the country. Similar concerns caused milkshakes to be momentarily unavailable at McDonald's in the United Kingdom last summer.

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