McDonald's launching meatless 'McPlant' burger

NEW YORK - Fast food giant McDonald's on Monday announced it was launching a new plant-based burger named the "McPlant" to cater to the growing number of people who do not eat meat.

The group had already tested out a plant-based burger in cooperation with the company Beyond Meat, which specializes in vegan meat substitutes.

The new line will be produced exclusively for McDonald's, and will be introduced in selected markets next year.

The restaurant chain has not yet said if it will renew its collaboration with Beyond Meat, only saying it will reach out to third-party suppliers as with all its other products.

McDonald's told investors it was also considering plant-based substitutes for chicken products and for its egg and bacon breakfast sandwiches.

The brand had fallen behind in the niche market to rival Burger King, which was the first to launch a vegetarian version of its iconic "Whopper" burger in April 2019 in the United States.

McDonald's still relies on its flagship products like the "Big Mac", "McNuggets" and French fries, which account for around 70 percent of its sales in its main markets.

"As demand for the familiar in these uncertain times is more important than ever, the Company believes these core classics will continue to be significant drivers of growth thanks to both their popularity and profitability," McDonalds said in a statement.

The company also aims to put a new emphasis on chicken-based products, which are growing faster than the market for beef products.

Following the success of its spicy nuggets in the United States, McDonald's plans to launch a crispy chicken sandwich there in 2021.

To boost internet sales, which have already grown significantly since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the group will also test a new online platform and a new loyalty program.

It will also build new drive-in only outlets and have lines dedicated to customers who pre-ordered their meals online.

Agence France-Presse

300 Pizza Huts, mostly dine-in locations, to close

Up to 300 Pizza Hut restaurants will be closed, most of them dine-in locations not well suited for carryout and delivery at a time when millions of people are sheltering and eating at home.

Pizza sales have exploded during the pandemic. Domino’s last month reported a 30% spike in quarterly profits. On Monday it said that it was hiring more than 20,000 people to handle surging orders.

Franchisee NPC International said Monday in documents filed in bankruptcy court that it had come to an agreement with Pizza Hut to close hundreds of locations. The Leawood, Kansas, company filed for bankruptcy protection last month.

NPC owns 1,225 Pizza Huts and 385 Wendy’s restaurants in 27 states. There are 6,700 Pizza Hut restaurants in the U.S.

In its filing, NPC said that closing stores not designed for pick-up or delivery will allow it to invest in smaller stores that can better handle online orders.

In May, Pizza Hut’s U.S. carryout and delivery sales reached an eight-year high, according to Yum Brands Inc., the Louisville, Kentucky, company that also owns KFC and Taco Bell.

But Pizza Hut’s U.S. sales grew just 1% in the April-June period; rival Domino’s Pizza, which has smaller, carryout-focused stores, posted a 20% jump in U.S. sales.

Yum Brands in a prepared statement said the stores being closed had underperformed others owned by NPC, and that shedding them would strengthen NPC’s remaining portfolio.

Associated Press

Burger King unveils 'Whopper' from cows on green diet

NEW YORK -- For those seeking to tackle climate change and get a fast food fix, Burger King has the answer -- a Whopper from cows that fart and burp less.

The fast-food giant announced Tuesday that select restaurants in five US cities -- New York, Miami, Portland, Los Angeles and Austin, Texas -- would be serving Whoppers made from "reduced methane emissions" beef.

The chain says that adding just 100 grams of lemongrass leaves to a cow's diet late in life could reduce their output of methane, a greenhouse gas responsible for global warming.

Initial study results revealed an up to 33 percent reduction in methane emissions from cows on the new diet in the last three to four months of their lives, Burger King said.

"At Burger King, we believe that delicious, affordable, and convenient meals can also be sustainable," said global chief marketing officer Fernando Machado.

But the company, which worked with two scientists on the project, said it hopes to inspire other groups to make similar moves by making their findings public.

"If the whole industry, from farmers, meat suppliers, and other brands join us, we can increase scale and collectively help reduce methane emissions that affect climate change," Machado said.

Burger King had already moved to respond to changing tastes of environmentally conscious customers who limit their meat intake by offering a vegetarian Whopper last year. 

Agence France-Presse

McDonald's sells ready-to-cook chicken parts, nuggets during lockdown

MANILA - Ready-to-cook frozen food packs from McDonald's Philippines will be available starting Wednesday for take out and drive-thru orders during the COVID-19 lockdown, the company said.

Marinated chicken cuts are available for P219 per pack while chicken nuggets sells for P454 per 1.1 kg pack, McDonald's said in an advisory.

Jollibee started selling ready-to-cook products in March. Dine in option for restaurants was suspended during the enhanced community quarantine period.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Jollibee slashes capex, eyes delivery to recover from COVID-19 lockdown

MANILA - Jollibee Foods Corp said Tuesday it would reduce its planned capital expenditures for the year as the coronavirus pandemic disrupts operations.

Capex for 2020 was cut by 64 percent to P5 billion from P14 billion due to "operational constraints" and "limited mobility" caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Jollibee told the stock exchange. 

Deliveries accounted for 5 percent of total sales in the early part of 2020, from 3 percent during the same comparable period in 2019, the Philippines' largest fast food operator said. 

Select stores in Luzon were closed from mid-March due to the lockdown, which was extended until April 30. Stores that stayed open were limited to drive thru, takeout, delivery and selling ready-to-cook meals.

Jollibee is eyeing “full restoration” after the lockdown is lifted with its delivery business driving recovery, said CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong.

“While the COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented disruption to our operations in the Philippines and other parts of the world, we are already planning for the full restoration of our operations. We expect growth to resume even if gradually, driven by our Delivery, Take-Out and Drive Thru business channels,” Tanmantiong said. 

Jollibee has donated P100 million worth of food from its brands to frontliners. It would allot another P120 million in food aid for the marginalized sector, JFC said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Jollibee 'ready-to-cook' items for sale during COVID-19 lockdown

MANILA - Jollibee Foods Corp said Friday it made available ready-to-cook items in select stores for take-out or drive thru after it closed outlets to dine-in customers during the 1-month lockdown of Luzon.

A limited time offer "ready-to-cook" menu went viral online which includes the marinated and spicy version of its famous Chickenjoy. 

In a response to a Twitter user, Jollibee said "the ready-to-cook-items are available in Jollibee stores nationwide that are open for take out and drive thru, until supplies last."


Ready-to-eat beef tapa, tuna pie, french fries and grated cheese are also available, based on the menu. Participating branches are listed on its official website, JFC said.

Restaurants are allowed to operate take-out and delivery services during the Luzon-wide COVID-19 lockdown effective until April 12.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

McDonald's Philippines issues P500-M response fund to aid employees, communities it serves

Golden Arches Development Corporation (McDonald's Philippines), majority owned and operated by Dr. George T. Yang, has announced the release of a response fund of P500 million to enable the company to provide assistance for its employees and the communities it serves given the current crisis that the whole nation is facing.

For company employees, the fund covers:

* Salaries of restaurant crew and managers—whether they are unable to come to work or not—and head office employees, to be released for the period of the Enhanced Community Quarantine.

* A special premium pay package to be provided for crew and managers who are able to come to work in selected stores that remain open to serve the community in enhanced quarantine areas.

* Special benefits like provision of care kits (face masks, alcohol and vitamins) to ensure employee safety in the workplace as well as provisions for premium pay.

For communities, the fund covers:

* Food to be donated to frontliners like medical health workers, LGU workers, NGO volunteers, and the marginalized sector who are challenged to have access to food during this time.

According to McDonald's Philippines Chairman and Founder Dr. George Yang, ''amidst any crisis, people must come first; we do what we can to ensure their welfare. We also have a responsibility to our partners to ensure that they can continue doing business and be able to care for their own people. Finally, as a Filipino company, we have a duty to be a partner of the government in serving the public in whatever way we can.''

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Jollibee allots P1 billion to pay employees during COVID-19 quarantine

MANILA - Jollibee Foods Corp said it set aside P1 billion to continue paying employees during the COVID-19 lockdown in the Philippines most populous island group.

The emergency response fund “covers all work teams of Jollibee Group’s offices, stores, commissaries, and logistics centers, including the senior citizens and PWDs assigned to stores under the joint employment program with local government units.”

Employees will continue to get their full month’s salary, and will receive their 13th month pay by April 30, the country's largest fastfood operator said.

Jollibee said it would extend the same assistance to its partner employers to provide financial support to their employees during the lockdown of Luzon, which will end on April 12.

“In these times we know how people are worrying about their safety and how to take care of their families. We want to lessen their worries and we are setting up this fund to help them through this difficult time,” said Jollibee chairman and founder Tony Tan Caktiong in the statement.

Jollibee earlier said it would donate P100 million worth of food packs from its different brands to healthcare workers and on-ground checkpoint personnel.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Jollibee closing some stores in Luzon due to COVID-19 lockdown

MANILA - Jollibee Foods Corp on Wednesday said it would close some stores in Luzon during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Outlets that will stay open will service customers on drive-thru, delivery and take out, the country's largest restaurant operator said in an advisory. 

"We are temporarily closing some of out stores in Luzon as a result of the enhanced community quarantine," Jollibee said.



Contactless delivery will also be imposed with riders standing 6-feet away from consumers during transactions, it said. 

Strict sanitation and social distancing are being observed for stores catering to take-out and drive-thru orders, Jollibee said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Multilingual robot waitress serves up fries in Afghanistan

KABUL - In downtown Kabul, a robotic waitress named "Timia" rolls across a restaurant to serve pizza and fries to a customer.

Zahra Barakzai, 30, cheerfully receives her meal from the robot, who has drawn curious diners since she was unveiled at Time Restaurant last month.

"It was very interesting to me because it was the first robot to come into a restaurant in Afghanistan and serve food. It was nice to see the robot here, it's kind of fun," said Barakzai.

Though manufactured in Japan and serving American-style fast food such as cola and burgers, Time Restaurant's team designed the robot with locals in mind.

The robot speaks Dari and Pashto, as well as English, and her head is designed to appear as though she is wearing a hijab, the headscarf worn by most Muslim women in Afghanistan.

Decades of war in Afghanistan have hampered the development of the country's technology, education and innovation sector, though bright spots exist as access to education, including for girls, improves.

In 2017, an all-female robotics team from Western city of Herat rose to global fame when they were initially refused and later cleared to compete in a robotics competition in the United States. Their solar-powered robot later won an award at an international robotics festival held in Estonia.

Zuhal, 13, a customer at the restaurant, said she was inspired, having previously only seen robots in cartoons.

"I never thought I would see a robot one day in my own town, but now I'm happy to see the robot in my favorite restaurant, it means that Afghanistan is developing," she said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Jollibee raises $600 million from first ever bond sale

MANILA -- Jollibee Foods Corp said Friday it raised $600 million (P30.5 billion) from its first ever bond issue, which will help fund its overseas expansion.

Proceeds from the sale will be used primarily to finance short-term debt from its acquisition of The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, the Philippines' largest fastfood operator told the stock exchange.

It was the first bond issue since Jollibee listed on the stock exchange in 1993. The offer was upsized from $400 million due to strong demand, Jollibee said. The securities will be listed in Singapore.

"The objective of management for this issuance is to further strengthen the balance sheet of JFC to build a stronger foundation for accelerating its growth in order to achieve its vision to become one of the top 5 restaurant companies in the world.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Bruce Lee’s daughter sues fast food chain for using father's image

A company run by Bruce Lee's daughter is suing a Chinese fast food chain for allegedly using an image of the late martial arts film star without permission.

Shannon Lee's Bruce Lee Enterprises accuses restaurant chain Kungfu Catering Management of having used her father's image for 15 years in a logo without paying intellectual property rights.

The food chain responded Thursday by saying the logo had long been authorized by Chinese authorities.


"We're confused that we are prosecuted many years later. We're actively studying the case and preparing to respond," the company said in a statement posted on China's Twitter-like Weibo platform. 

According to the Chinese internet portal sina.com, Shannon Lee asked the food chain to immediately stop using her father's image and clarify for 90 consecutive days that it has nothing to do with Bruce Lee, and pay compensation of 210 million yuan (US$30 million).

The Guangzhou-based restaurant chain known as Real Kung Fu (Zhen Gongfu in Mandarin) was founded in 1990. Since 2004 its logo has featured image of a dark-haired man in a kung fu pose who looks like Bruce Lee.

The founder of the chain said it has more than 600 stores across the country, with a total asset value of over five billion yuan, according to Chinese media.

It ranked among the top 10 fast-food companies in China last year on a list issued by China Cuisine Association.

Bruce Lee Enterprises in Los Angeles handles merchandising and licensing of Bruce Lee's image and aims to keep the martial artist’s energy alive, its official website showed.

Shannon Lee, who has taken over the company from her mother, has been involved in the preservation of her father's legacy for around two decades.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Burger King kills off plastic toys from kids' meals in UK

In the climactic scene of “Toy Story 3,” Woody, Buzz Lightyear and the rest of the crew narrowly escape death when a remote-controlled claw lifts them from an incinerator just before flames engulf them.

Now Burger King is set to enact an alternative ending — collecting, sorting and chopping up hundreds of thousands of tiny toys, before melting them into hot plastic at a factory in northern England.

To anyone with childhood memories of beloved action figures, this may sound like an act of carnage — more Dante’s “Inferno” than Disney Pixar. But the “meltdown” is intended as a grand environmental gesture. Faced with growing public concern over the proliferation of single-use plastic, Burger King has vowed to stop giving away plastic toys with children’s meals in Britain and has encouraged customers to deposit old toys in collection bins at the chain’s locations there.

In December, the recycling firm Pentatonic will melt those orphaned action figures, then turn the raw material into playground equipment and reusable tray tables. Burger King plans to eliminate non-biodegradable toys from all its restaurants worldwide by 2025.

“That might be a shame for a tiny minority of people,” said Alasdair Murdoch, chief executive of Burger King in the United Kingdom. “But it’s very clear that long term, people think that we’re doing the right thing.”

For decades, fast-food toys have operated as marketing tools designed to get children eating French fries and Chicken McNuggets. Politicians and public health advocates in the United States have repeatedly tried to ban them, arguing that fast-food marketing aimed at children contributes to obesity.

Those health concerns never swayed the major fast-food companies, but a viral British petition arguing that the toys “harm animals and pollute the sea” has made a stronger impression. It is part of a growing public backlash against single-use, disposable plastic items like straws and cups, as well as myriad other plastic objects piling up in landfills, littering beaches and floating in oceans.

Burger King is not the only chain contemplating a toyless future. In 2018, McDonald’s established a task force to explore “ways to lessen the impact of the toys,” according to Elaine Strunk, the chain’s director of sustainability.

Based on the task force’s recommendations, McDonald’s has moved to scale back the distribution of plastic toys in Britain and other markets outside the United States, although it has stopped short of pledging to discontinue them. In October, McDonald’s offered its British customers Happy Meals with a choice of a toy or a bag of fruit.

Next year, children at its British locations will be able to choose between a toy or a book. In the past, McDonald’s has handed out Roald Dahl books, as well as stories about dinosaurs by English author Cressida Cowell.

“We are on a journey across all of our categories and then beyond to make more sustainable environmental footprints,” Strunk said. “It’s always a lens through which we look at decisions we’re making.”

But environmental experts say it is not clear whether eliminating plastic toys would meaningfully advance plastic reduction efforts in the fast-food industry, let alone make a dent in the broader pollution problem.

Burger King has said ending distribution of the toys in Britain would reduce its annual plastic footprint by more than 300 tons. But the context for that number is unclear: Burger King has not calculated the total amount of plastic it uses across its global markets, according to its chief marketing officer, Fernando Machado. And at some restaurants in the United States, Burger King continues to serve drinks in foam cups, even as McDonald’s and other chains have banned the environmentally harmful products.

McDonald’s officials said the company was still working out an effective way to calculate its overall plastic footprint and declined to reveal the volume of plastic toys it distributes each year.

“If you’re a company like Burger King whose packaging is seen as a big part of the problem, it doesn’t make sense to act on the toys but not on your packaging,” said Conrad MacKerron, who helps run As You Sow, a shareholder advocacy group that has pushed major fast-food companies to cut down on plastic. “The company seems to be trying to impose a certain priority on this which I don’t think is necessarily merited.”

Machado said Burger King planned to eliminate foam cups soon. And in the coming months, he said, the company will publish a website detailing the steps it has taken to reduce pollution.

“We’re not sitting here on any level saying that we are perfect,” said Murdoch, Burger King’s chief in the United Kingdom. “We’re on a journey, and we’ve got a long way to go, but we’re pretty keen on it.”

For years, McDonald’s and Burger King have resisted attempts to regulate the distribution of plastic toys, which began proliferating in the 1980s. The toys have proved to be powerful marketing devices. A study by researchers at Dartmouth College found that knowledge of fast-food toys among young children “was associated with greater frequency of eating at McDonald’s.”

“It’s been a pretty important part of the business model of the companies that use them,” said Joel Bakan, author of “Childhood Under Siege,” a 2011 book about marketing efforts aimed at children. “Both the packaging of the Happy Meal and the addition of the toy to it was highly effective in reaching children.”

In 2010, legislators in San Francisco voted to bar fast-food restaurants from giving away toys with children’s meals that fell short of nutritional standards, arguing that the figurines promoted unhealthy eating. But McDonald’s got around the ban on giveaways by charging 10 cents for each toy.

In the last decade, officials in New York, Nebraska and Wisconsin have tried and failed to ban the plastic toys, stymied in part by the lobbying muscle of the fast-food industry.

Now, rising environmental concerns over plastic waste appear to be succeeding where the obesity argument failed. And fast-food chains have grown increasingly focused on digital marketing tools, such as giving children scannable codes that can unlock games on branded apps, making plastic figurines less crucial to attracting younger customers.

“Maybe this is not the key for them anymore,” said Sara Ribakove, a policy official at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which has campaigned against fast-food toys. “There’s a strong shift in the digital environment and the way we’re seeing marketing. It’s become much more personalized. It’s coming to everyone’s doorstep in a different way.”

Over the next few years, Burger King will gradually replace plastic toys with digital alternatives, company executives said, though the chain could also develop toys made from biodegradable materials.

A handful of other fast-food chains have scrapped the toys for commercial rather than environmental reasons. In 2013, Taco Bell announced that children’s meals would not be a part of its “long-term brand strategy.” Jack in the Box stopped giving away toys in 2011, saying, “We focus on adults and not children.”

But the major rival of McDonald’s and Burger King, Wendy’s, continues to offer the plastic figurines. Recently, the chain rolled out a line of Transformers toys. A Wendy’s spokeswoman did not respond to requests for comment.

McDonald’s has experimented with toy alternatives in a number of markets, including Germany and France as well as Britain. In Japan, McDonald’s allows customers to return toys so the company can convert them into trays, a project similar to Burger King’s initiative in Britain. In the coming years, McDonald’s officials said, the company expects to distribute fewer plastics toys, as books and other alternatives become more popular.

“It’s all about choice,” said Kandice McLeod, a McDonald’s official who oversees Happy Meal toys. “Our customers want to know that they have a choice in what they’re going to receive.”

In the United States, however, one crucial constituency appears to remain broadly supportive of plastic toys: children.

On a recent Sunday night at a McDonald’s in New York City, 8-year-old Amber Smith sat quietly, playing with the miniature Pokeball that had come with her Happy Meal. As far back as she can remember, she said, fast-food toys have been her favorite part of McDonald’s.

“All the toys, in my opinion, are super awesome,” she said. “I’m not picky with the toys.”

Asked about the prospect of a toyless Happy Meal, Amber balled her hands into fists. “I like the food, too,” she said. But without the toys, “I’d make a tantrum.”


2019 The New York Times Company

source: news.abs-cbn.com

McFlurry lids to go in Europe as McDonald's moves away from plastic

BRUSSELS — Fast food giant McDonald's is speeding up its move to minimize the use of plastic in its restaurants in Europe, where legislation on single-use items is becoming increasingly restrictive.

The US burger behemoth announced Thursday the introduction of new packaging in all its restaurants in Europe by the end of 2020 for the McFlurry, an ice cream dessert currently served in a disposable cup with a thick plastic lid.

The new packaging does away with the need for the lid, McDonald's says, estimating that the change will save more than 1,200 tons of plastic a year in Europe.

The European Union is implementing stronger legislation to try to reduce the amount of plastic that ends up in landfills, with a ban on around a dozen non-recyclable items including drinks straws set to come into force in 2021.

Other measures from McDonald's include replacing plastic lids on drinks with a fiber-based alternative in France, a key European market for the company, saving some 1,100 tonnes of plastic per year.

"We have a goal to have all of our packaging from renewable resources by 2025, and also a goal to recycle in every single one of our 37,000 restaurants around the globe by 2025," the McDonald's vice president for sustainability Keith Kenny told AFP.

Plastic is used in 12 percent of McDonald's packaging in Europe, the company says, with 60 percent of restaurants in the 8 biggest markets offering customer recycling facilities.

In the UK, the company is testing a scheme in some restaurants to let customers return used Happy Meal toys.

"We know that perhaps we're going to market with imperfect solutions, but our customers will give us credit for that and we continue to develop and improve them as we learn more and we get customers' feedback and we improve the process," Kenny said.

Major corporations, often criticized by campaigners for putting profit before the environment, are trying to respond to growing pressure from consumers for more responsible practices.

Food and cosmetics giant Unilever announced last month that it will cut its use of new plastic in packaging by half by 2025, acknowledging that the move was partly aimed at young, more environmentally conscious customers.

In May 2017 the campaign group Zero Waste France published a report criticizing McDonald's approach to waste.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

With 'veggie Whopper,' Burger King eyes big bite of Europe

LONDON — US fast-food giant Burger King on Tuesday launched its meatless burger in Europe, hoping to capture a substantial slice of a growing market.

The vegetarian version of its prime "Whopper" hamburger is being added to the menu in 25 countries and 2,500 restaurants after testing in the United States and Sweden.

"It's the biggest production launch ever done in Europe. We see the potential in the future that this is a growing category," company president David Shear told AFP.

The new meatless sandwich is to be launched in Britain at a later date, possibly around the start of next year, the firm said.

Burger King, which is best known for flame-grilled patties, said with the new product it was now the biggest European fast-food restaurant chain offering a veggie burger.

The company said the vegetarian product had boosted sales of traditional burgers in the United States, as it attracted new customers who normally did not patronize fast-food outlets.

Some critics noted however that if the same cooking grills were used for meat and chicken products, strict vegetarians would shun the new offering.

Shear did not provide details on sales or European market targets, meanwhile.

The fast-food giant and competitors Yum Brands and Kentucky Fried Chicken have got a step ahead of McDonald's in the United States in recent months.

In April, McDonald's launched a test in Germany of its Big Vegan burger, developed in collaboration with Nestle.

It has also been testing a meat-free cheeseburger in Canada since late September but is not yet at the stage of large-scale sales.

The global food industry has seen competition open up for alternative proteins to draw in growing numbers of consumers who have adopted a vegan diet for dietary, ethical or environmental reasons.

JPMorgan has said the plant-based "meat" market could be worth $100 billion in the next 15 years because of the climate emergency, as beef production is a major global polluter.

British tycoon Richard Branson has invested in Impossible Foods, while Beyond Meat is part-financed by the billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates.

They are in competition with Dutch firm The Vegetarian Butcher, which was bought recently by the multinational group Unilever, and which supplies Burger King in Europe.

Nestle already has had a soya protein and wheat-based hamburger on sale in European and US supermarkets since the end of September.

Consultants Deloitte said in a recent study: "Gone are the days when plant-based alternative products were for the niche consumer and warranted limited shelf space...

"The European plant-based alternatives market leads the way in terms of market size, with the European meat substitutes market accounting for around 40 percent of the global market."

The market is forecast to grow to 2.4 billion euros ($2.6 billion, £2.1 billion) by 2025 from 1.5 billion euros in 2018, it added.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Popeyes sandwich strikes a chord for African-Americans

KANSAS CITY, Montana — The videos of mind-numbing first bites and long lines, the celebratory memes and fawning reviews: The return of the Popeyes chicken sandwich Sunday has met with the same social-media frenzy that first greeted it last summer.

But embedded in many of the catchy memes and witty messages is not just an affection for spicy seasoning and crisp breading. There’s also a sentiment that Popeyes has struck a special chord for African Americans — specifically, that its celebrated sandwich tastes like something that could have come from a black home kitchen.

One Twitter user, @RocBoy_Mel, wrote Sunday that he did not know whose “grandma” made the sandwiches, “but I finally got my hands on one today and I was very impressed.”

In a video clip that went viral on Twitter after the fast-food sandwich was introduced in August, a white host on the news and entertainment show “Daily Blast Live” tried the sandwich, and her black co-host asked, “Does that taste like a neighborhood you’ve never been to?”

In a Facebook post in August, Nadiyah Ali, a nurse from Katy, Texas, compared the sandwich to a rival’s: Chick-fil-A’s version, she wrote, tasted as if it were made “by a white woman named Sarah who grew up around black people.” The Popeyes sandwich, she added, tasted “like it was cooked by an older black lady named Lucille.”

Black people were saying they liked the chicken not just for its taste, but also for the feelings of home cooking it evoked. It was the type of chicken they could take to a family potluck and not get a side-eye.

“You most definitely can take a bucket of Popeyes chicken, and nobody’s going to say anything,” said Los, 27, who declined to give his last name as he left a Popeyes in Kansas City, Missouri. “They’ll be like, ‘Ah, who cooked this?’ ”

Not everyone, of course, thinks Popeyes tastes down-home. Asked if Popeyes chicken reminded him of home cooking, Corey Thatch, 38, a friend of Los’, replied, “I ain’t going to say all that, because my grandma’s chicken was my grandma’s chicken.”

Still, even approaching authenticity is no small feat for a company that was started by a white man and is now owned by the conglomerate, Restaurant Brands International, that also owns Burger King and Tim Hortons.

It can be easy to misfire with dishes that have deep traditions among African Americans — I recall my wife’s gagging as she described biting into macaroni and cheese made by a white co-worker, and discovering that it contained corn. Then there was the moment in 2006 when Oprah Winfrey took an on-air bite of a chicken-and-spinach dish made by a white woman who had won $1 million for it in the Pillsbury Bake-Off.

“Did we add salt and pepper?” Winfrey asked with a befuddled grimace. (The woman had not.) “I think we needed salt and pepper.”

When the founder of Popeyes, Al Copeland, opened his first fried-chicken joint, Chicken on the Run, in a New Orleans suburb in the early 1970s, sales were underwhelming. He reopened with a new, spicier seasoning mixture, and Popeyes was born.

The South has its own well-known flavors, from the hands of chefs of many backgrounds. So it is unsurprising that the recipe trademarked by Copeland, who died in 2008, has resonated across racial lines.

“The heritage of the Popeyes brand comes from Louisiana, where many cultures come together to produce a unique and beautiful culinary experience,” Dori Alvarez, a company spokeswoman, wrote in an email.

But black people were at the root of many southern culinary traditions. Those traditions have traveled with African American families who resettled throughout the country. “Black hands were in that pot all the time, and still are,” said Omar Tate, the chef and founder of Honeysuckle, a pop-up dinner series in New York and Philadelphia that uses food to explore black identity.

Popeyes would not provide information about its customer demographics. But overall, African Americans, who are about 13 percent of the country’s population, buy more fried chicken than their numbers would indicate: nearly 30 percent of all fast-food fried chicken, and 15 percent of all breaded chicken sandwiches, according to the NPD Group, a market research firm.

Ali, who wrote the Facebook post comparing the Popeyes sandwich to Chick-fil-A’s, said she wasn’t suggesting that white people could not cook as well as African Americans — just differently. They seem to rely on precise measurements, she said.

“Black folks don’t cook like that,” she said. “Our recipes are a little bit of this, a little bit of that. We season until it’s right. That’s what Popeyes tastes like.”

Tate, the chef, said it was difficult to liken Popeyes to authentically black cooking. When he thinks of authenticity, he thinks of the techniques of someone like Edna Lewis, a pioneering black chef, who fried meats in lard and seasoned the fryer with smoked pork.

“That’s authentic. That’s what soul food is to me,” he said. “It’s one of those black magic things that can’t be reproduced.”

Popeyes’ inroads with black Americans may be as much about marketing as anything else. The company has made bald appeals to African Americans in its advertising, stoking criticism that it is pandering. When the chain introduced a fictitious black woman named Annie the Chicken Queen in its commercials about a decade ago, some people criticized it as racist. Alvarez, the Popeyes spokeswoman, declined to discuss the company’s marketing.

But those marketing decisions, and the location of many Popeyes restaurants in black communities, have given many African Americans a sense of connection with the menu, said Psyche Williams-Forson, the chairwoman of American studies at the University of Maryland-College Park and the author of “Building Houses Out of Chicken Legs: Black Women, Food and Power.”

“Black communities can say, ‘This is our own and it tastes like our own,’ ” she said. “You’ve got location. You’ve got taste. You’ve got texture. And you’ve got a food that people enjoy. You have a perfect storm there.”

If Popeyes has impressed African Americans, the hubbub over the sandwich has also raised questions of corporate responsibility. There have been demands that the chain invest in the black communities that have driven much of its success, and calls for better treatment of low-wage workers who have toiled to meet the heavy demand for the sandwich.

“We own the fried-chicken narrative,” said Nicole Taylor, who is black and the executive food editor at the website Thrillist. “Black people are turning it into a political moment.”


2019 The New York Times Company

source: news.abs-cbn.com

McDonald's CEO out after 'consensual relationship' with employee

NEW YORK — McDonald's announced Sunday that president and CEO Steve Easterbrook was out after showing "poor judgment" by engaging in a "consensual relationship" with an employee.

Easterbrook was replaced by Chris Kempczinski, the president of McDonald's USA. Kempczinski was also elected to the board of directors.

"Easterbrook... has separated from the company following the board's determination that he violated company policy and demonstrated poor judgment involving a recent consensual relationship with an employee," the company said in a statement. 

There were no additional details of his ouster, and whether he was fired or allowed to resign.

Kempczinski "has the right mix of skills and experience to lead us forward having run our US business, where franchisees are delivering strong financial and operational results, and overseen global strategy, business development and innovation," the company quoted Enrique Hernandez Jr, chairman of McDonald's board of directors, as saying.

In its most recent earnings report, on October 22, McDonald's said profits dipped 1.8 percent in the third quarter from the year-ago period to $1.6 billion. Revenues edged up 1.1 percent to $5.4 billion.

The fast-food giant notched a healthy 5.9 percent increase in global comparable sales, including a solid rise in the United States. 

But profits were pressured by increased spending on technology and research and development.

McDonald's has invested heavily in home-delivery and mobile pay initiatives in recent years, and in 2019 has unveiled a number of acquisitions to boost its drive-through operation.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Chicken out? Serve Chickenjoy: How Jollibee took on McDonald's

MANILA -- Instead of chickening out, Jollibee offered fried chicken and focused on a delicious menu, its CEO said, recalling how the firm took on McDonald's to become the Philippines' largest fast food operator.

When McDonald's entered the Philippines at the start of the 1980s, Jollibee only had 12 stores. The young chain's founder, Tony Tan Caktiong, hired a foreign consultant to map out a strategy, said the current CEO, Ernesto Tan Mantiong.

At that time, Jollibee stores were behind in look, equipment, systems and process, except in one area: taste, Tan Mantiong told a recent dinner roundtable with businessmen in Manila.

"Instead of chickening out, we served Chicken Joy," Tan Mantiong said, referring to Jollibee fried chicken, which it eventually exported to its foreign outlets.

"We were warned that when McDonald's entered the country, it tended to wipe out local competitors. We were told to just give it up and do other businesses and not to confront the global giant," he said. "So Tony sought the help of a foreign consultant, who was an expert in corporate strategy."

ICE CREAM BEGINNINGS

Before setting up Jollibee, Tan Caktiong and his then girlfriend, Grace, set up 2 ice cream parlors, one in Cubao and another in Quiapo from a seed capital of P350,000.

"Since they plan on getting married, they applied for a franchise for their livelihood," Tan Mantiong said.

After a few months of operations, Tan Caktiong and his brothers found out that consumers craved hot meals and burgers, which eventually replaced the ice cream-heavy menu, Tan Mantiong said.

"Since we were now selling primarily hot meals and burgers, we thought it would be good to change the name of our stores," he said.

WHY JOLLIBEE?

Naming the business was a long process, Tan Mantiong said. The word "Jolli" was inspired by a helicopter used during the Vietnam war called "Jolly Green Giant," which the Tan family spotted during an exhibit in Clark, while "bee" was suggested by Tan Caktiong’s wife Grace.

Disney’s Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck were inspirations for the group’s mascot, Tan Mantiong earlier shared in an interview with CNBC.

The country’s largest food operator has since introduced different versions of its logo including "flying bee" and a "standing bee."

ASIA’S PRIDE

Jollibee reached its first 1000th store milestone in 2017. Today it has over 1,400 stores in 16 countries, Tan Mantiong said.

The Jollibee group has 6 brands in the Philippines and over 3,420 stores, he said. Globally, the company has a total of 15 brands and over 5,800 stores in 35 countries, he said. 

Jollibee acquired US-based burger chain Smashburger as well as the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf brand. It has invested in Mexican-American Tortas Fronteras, and has franchise interests in other global brands such as Panda Express, Dunkin Donuts and Pho24. 

"It is heartening to know that to this day, the Philippines is the only country in the whole world where a local company beat the global leader in its own game," Tan Mantiong said.

"I’ve learned that it is important to always dream big with passion and commitment. Even when we started out, we dream big and even though many thought it was crazy. And it was that crazy dream that brought us to where we are now," he said.

Even after 40 years, founder Tan Caktiong still has his eyes on potential acquisitions or brands with "great tasting food" and a scalable model, his brother and successor said.

Looking back, with a shoebox of letters from his wife Susan to remind him of past challenges, Tan Mantiong said the company he helped build "had come a long way."

"There will be many more challenges along the way, but I truly believe that the best is yet to come," he said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

McDonald's to test veggie burger in Canada

NEW YORK - Fast food giant McDonald's is dipping another foot into the world of plant-based "meat," announcing plans on Thursday to test a vegetarian burger in Canada.

The "PLT," standing for "Plant.Lettuce.Tomato," will be available for 12 weeks in 28 restaurants in Ontario starting on September 30.

"McDonald's has a proud legacy of fun, delicious and craveable food -- and now, we're extending that to a test of a juicy, plant-based burger," said Ann Wahlgren, vice president of global menu strategy.

"We've been working on our recipe and now we're ready to hear feedback from our customers."

Plant-based protein is not a completely new pursuit for McDonald's. The fast-food giant has launched with Nestle and vegetarian burger in Germany.

This time, McDonald's plans to partner with the fast-growing Beyond Meat, which developed a patty that McDonald's described as "delicious, juicy, perfectly dressed plant-based burger" with "the iconic McDonald's taste customers have come to love."

McDonald's rivals are also making a push into the fast-growing business.

Burger King in April unveiled a vegetarian "Whopper," while KFC, also with Beyond Meat, has sold plant-based nuggets.

While meat alternatives have been around for decades, a new generation of companies including Impossible Burger and Beyond Meat have employed technologies to produce proteins with taste and texture that more closely approximate meat.

Large food companies are also becoming more active in the space, with Nestle planning on October 1 to launch its "Awesome Burger" in the United States after unveiling the "Incredible Burger" in Europe.

jum-jmb/dg

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Jollibee eyes China, US as next 'pillars of growth'

MANILA - Jollibee Foods Corp on Monday said it planned to have 3 strong pillars of growth, namely the Philippines, China, and the US. 

Jollibee intended to grow its foreign business faster than its local units, the country's largest fastfood chain operator said in a disclosure to the stock exchange. 

"The long-term goals of JFC are to have 3 strong pillars of growth – Philippines, China and USA. However, it does not mean that the Philippine business will slow down, the intention is to have its foreign business grow faster than its Philippine business," JFC said.

JFC aims to fulfill this goal in "10 years or more," the statement said. 

The group has been growing its footprint in the US, with its most recent acquisition of Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in a deal worth a total $350 million (P18 billion).

Last year, Jollibee took a 47-percent stake in Mexican chain Tortas Frontera. It also took full ownership of US-based burger chain Smashburger.

Jollibee may also open its first store in China in the near future, its CEO Ernesto Tanmantiong said in an earlier interview with CNBC. The group operates the Dunkin Donuts franchise in China. 

In the Philippines, Jollibee, Chowking, Greenwhich, Red Ribbon, Mang Inasal, and Burger King stores are part of the JFC portfolio.

source: news.abs-cbn.com