KFC Corporation is an American fast food chain known for its Kentucky fried chicken and chicken sandwiches. It is a subsidiary to Yum! Brands, with a revenue of $12.87 Billion in 2020.
| Basic information | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1930-03-20 |
| Legal Structure | Public subsidiary |
| Industry | Food |
| Also known as | |
| Official website | https://www.kfc.com/ |
Consumer-impact summary
- Security Vulnerabilities
- Food Outbreaks
- Misleading Consumers
Incidents
This is a list of all consumer-protection incidents this company is involved in. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the KFC category.
KFC China Food Outbreak
In December 2012, KFC China was exposed after an investigation reported and aired by an Chinese Television station[1] showcased the company suppliers, Liuhe Group and Yingta Group, sold chicken with antibiotics, hormones (allowing for birds to reach maturity in 45 days),[2] and a banned drug known as chloramphenicol. [3]
As a result of this report, consumers in china were terrified of the news, along with the bird flu happening in march, it impacted consumers trusts, resulting in many of them looking for alternative options or boycotting. KFC and its parent company, Yum! Brands saw decreased sales, with Yum Brands in particular reaching as low as 20%.[4][5]
Yum! Brands initially responded by saying that 45 day old chicken is the norm in the industry, however in January, they issued an formal apology to the public. Couple of weeks later, KFC China issued an campaign dubbed "Operation Thunder", highlighting the company steps to ensure the safety of their chicken. Along with starting an campaign, KFC also started a poetry contest on social media, with the winner getting an iPad Mini.
With the company efforts to persuade customers of their product safety, a survey conducted in November showcased around 40% of participants still had concerns about KFC food safety practices.[6]
Oprah KFC Coupon
KFC collaborated with the hit show The Oprah Winfrey Show for its promotion on KFC new item, Kentucky Grilled Chicken in 2009, announcing users could download a coupon from her website for a free two-piece Kentucky Grilled Chicken meal with no additional costs. Within a couple of days, KFC cancelled the promotion, however this resulted in riots from consumers and a class action lawsuit that settled with KFC compensating up to $15.96 for the original coupon, and $8 for the PDF coupon for each household.[7][8]
KFC Security Breach
- Main article: link to the main CR Wiki article
On December 9, 2016, KFC warned 1.2 million users of its Colonel's Club loyalty program about a security breach in the UK, pleading users to immediately change their passwords.[9]
Our monitoring systems have found a small number of Colonel’s Club accounts may have been compromised as a result of our website being targeted. Whilst it is unlikely you have been impacted, we advise that you change your password as a precaution.”[10]
KFC claims that only 30 users were affected and the information leaked doesn't contain financial information.
“We take the online security of our fans very seriously, so we’ve advised all Colonel’s Club members to change their passwords as a precaution, despite only a small number of accounts being directly affected. We don’t store credit card details as part of our Colonel’s Club rewards scheme, so no financial data was compromised.” -- Brad Scheiner, Head of IT at KFC UK & Ireland[11]
See also
References
- ↑ "KFC's Recovery in China is Going to Take Some Time". Food Safety News. 2013-02-06. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Cooper, Ted (2013-11-17). "KFC's Awful Year in China Is Finally Coming to an End". The Motley Fool. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Montlake, Simon (2012-12-20). "Chinese Animal-Feed Billionaire Takes Hit On KFC Food Safety Scare". Forbes. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "KFC's Food Safety Controversies in China". Scrib. 2026-03-02. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Yum Brands says KFC sales in China hit by bird flu scare". BBC. 2013-04-11. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Diners Not Convinced by KFC's China Revival Campaign". The Poultry Site. 2013-12-05. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Mirando, Sarah (2011-09-13). "Oprah KFC Coupon Class Action Settlement". Top Class Actions. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Seibold, Angie (2025-02-10). "The Oprah Mistake That Made KFC Run Out Of Chicken". The Takeout. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "1.2 million KFC customers warned of data breach". Data Leak Lawyers. 2026-03-02. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Pascu, Luana (2016-12-13). "KFC security breach leaks user information". Bitdefender. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "KFC Security Breach – 1.2 million members of its Colonel's Club warned to change passwords immediately". GBhackers. 2016-12-14. Retrieved 2026-03-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)