KFC remains under pressure in the Czech Republic: Following reports of manipulated expiry dates and spoiled meat, the fast-food chain has now responded publicly to the allegations for the first time. At the same time, Czech media have reported another incident in Jenišov.
It is a scandal unlike anything the fast-food market in the Czech Republic has seen before. After Czech investigative journalist Jan Tuna reported on alleged KFC practices involving the mishandling of fresh meat, the previously popular fast-food giant went silent in the country – but KFC has now broken its silence.
When journalist Jan Tuna published an initial report in September, claiming that KFC employees in the Czech Republic had allegedly falsified the expiry dates of chicken meat, online reactions were immediate and intense. Thousands of users criticised KFC, operated in the Czech Republic by the AmRest Group, over allegedly poor and potentially unsafe food quality.
In response to the allegations, the Czech Food Inspection Authority intensified checks at KFC and has carried out hundreds of inspections to date. Following his first report, Tuna also published additional findings, further damaging KFC’s reputation.
KFC Breaks Silence
KFC has now broken its silence. In an interview with CzechCrunch, the company publicly addressed the allegations. “At the beginning, it was extremely important for us to obtain all the documents about what actually happened,” says KFC Czech Republic chief, Ivana Makalová Dlouhá, to CzechCrunch. “That is why we decided to limit communication to the bare minimum, so we could fully focus on the inspections. We wanted to ensure we knew all the facts before speaking with our customers.” This explains the company’s previous silence regarding the allegations.
KFC had previously admitted to misconduct at a branch in Liberec. In September, the Food Inspection Authority found 8.6 kilograms of expired, marinated meat. According to KFC, however, the meat was not intended for sale and was already due to be disposed of. “The meat never reached the customer. I do not deny that it was a mistake – we have learned from it,” says Dlouhá.
KFC employs over six thousand people in the Czech Republic. “Individual failures can never be completely ruled out,” says Makalová Dlouhá, adding that KFC has placed even greater focus on additional staff training.
The impact of this error was clearly noticeable. “We can confirm that our visitor numbers have declined,” the KFC chief adds. AmRest, as a publicly listed company, has refused to comment on exact figures.
KFC Remains Under Pressure: Further Incident in Jenišov
In a KFC restaurant in Jenišov, in the Karlovy Vary region, inspectors from the State Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI) discovered mouldy muffins that had been placed on the counter for serving. Of the seven prepared items, four were covered with grey-white mould, visible to the naked eye.
The intensified inspections at KFC were triggered by a report from Czech journalist Jan Tuna
On his YouTube channel, Tuna versus, he published several reports on the improper handling of meat in KFC branches. Tuna mainly criticises falsified expiry information and the processing of meat that already smells spoiled. According to Tuna, these are not isolated incidents but a common practice.
KFC has been operated in the Czech Republic by AmRest for 27 years; the group’s brand portfolio in the country also includes Burger King, Pizza Hut, and Starbucks. Kentucky Fried Chicken is one of the leading fast-food chains in the Czech Republic, operating around 130 outlets nationwide.
