McDonald's BTS-meal frenzy sparks virus closures in Indonesia

JAKARTA - More than a dozen Indonesian McDonald's outlets were temporarily shuttered Wednesday over virus fears as the chain's new BTS meal deal sparked frenzied buying from fans in the K-pop mad country. 

Jakarta and several other cities slapped closure stickers on at least 13 outlets that were deluged with online food-delivery drivers picking up a meal set named after the hugely popular Korean boy band. 

"We temporarily closed four of six McDonald's stores here in Semarang for a couple of days," said Fajar Purwoto, the city's public order agency head.

"I don't want Semarang to be in the COVID-19 red zone again."

Indonesia is one of the hardest-hit nations in Asia.

Jakarta authorities did not respond to requests for comment. But local media said five stores in the capital were shut over BTS meal orders.

The meal set of chicken nuggets, fries and a drink, first made available in Indonesia Wednesday, has been on offer in dozens of countries since May.

BTS have become global superstars with millions of fans around the world since their debut in 2013.

Agence France-Presse

Lab-grown meat to go on sale in Singapore in world first

SINGAPORE - Lab-grown chicken will soon be available in restaurants for the first time after winning the green light from Singapore regulators.

US start-up Eat Just said Wednesday that its meat, created from animal cells and produced in bioreactors, had been approved for sale in the city-state as an ingredient in chicken bites. 

It said in a statement the news marked a "breakthrough for the global food industry", as it seeks to find less environmentally harmful ways of producing meat. 

Meat consumption is projected to increase over 70 percent by 2050, according to Eat Just, and experts have frequently warned it is a key driver of climate change. 

"I'm sure that our regulatory approval for cultured meat will be the first of many in Singapore and in countries around the globe," said Josh Tetrick, co-founder and CEO of Eat Just. 

"Working in partnership with the broader agriculture sector and forward-thinking policymakers, companies like ours can help meet the increased demand for animal protein as our population climbs to 9.7 billion by 2050."

The company said it had conducted over 20 production runs in 1,200 liter bioreactors, and checks on safety and quality showed its "cultured" product -- the term for meat grown in labs from animal cells -- met food standards. 

The meat was approved by the Singapore Food Agency, the city-state's regulator, after an extensive safety review, Eat Just said. 

Agence France-Presse

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

This popular QC restaurant that once served the Pope is set to close after 37 years

MANILA -- Another popular restaurant has become a casualty of the novel coronavirus pandemic as it ends its 37-year run.

Shangri-La Finest Chinese Cuisine announced on Wednesday that it will cease operations on August 1 "due for the most part to the challenges brought about by the ongoing pandemic."

"Our last day for dine-in and take-out services will be on July 31, 2020," the restaurant said in a Facebook post as it thanked all their patrons and supporters.

It added that the restaurant's management and its employees "will be praying for everyone's safety in this current situation."

In its 37 years of operations, Shangri-La Finest Cuisine has served the likes of Pope John Paul II and the late President Corazon Aquino.

Watch the restaurant's farewell video here.

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Dong Juan's Mother Ignacia branch closes due to COVID-19

MANILA -- Another restaurant has become a casualty of the COVID-19 crisis.

DZMM host Ahwel Paz announced Monday that the branch of Dong Juan restaurant at Mother Ignacia in Quezon City has permanently closed due to the pandemic. 

"Ikinalulungkot po naming ibahagi sa inyo na dahil po sa pandemic, sa COVID-19, ay magsasara na po ang Dong Juan Mother Ignacia," said Paz, who is one of the restaurant's managing partners.

He went on to assure the public that Dong Juan's other branches across the country remain open: "May mga ibang branches pa po sa ibang panig ng Pilipinas na puwede niyong bisitahin."

Paz also took the opportunity to thank all those who have supported Dong Juan's Mother Ignacia branch over the past six years.

"Maraming, maraming salamat po sa inyong suporta at pagmamahal. Sana po pagkatapos ng pandemic na ito ay muli po tayong magkita at magkasalo-salo," he said. 


Dong Juan's Mother Ignacia branch reposted Paz's video on its Facebook page, saying that the restaurant has ceased operations effective June 15. 

"Thank you for your patronage!" it said. 

Dong Juan is known for serving comfort food items such as pizza, pasta, burgers, and sizzling dishes, among others.

news.abs-cbn.com

M Bakery is back for pick-up, delivery with Mother's Day specials

MANILA -- M Bakery, Manila’s own branch of New York’s famous cupcakery, has special offerings to celebrate Mother’s Day.

On top of the list are special vanilla and chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream decorated with kid-like drawings and writing, bringing back a sense of whimsy and nostalgia.

Customers can send their own personalized designs and messages, too. M Bakery’s 6-inch and 9-inch cakes are also available for orders.

This follows the recent reopening of M Bakery’s Bonifacio Global City branch where the shop’s trademark banana pudding, classic and select specialty cakes and cupcakes, cheesecakes, icebox desserts, and cookies by the dozen are available for takeout and delivery.

“Since the implementation of the ECQ, our fans have been asking us for ways to get their hands on their favorite M Bakery desserts to help cope with the cabin fever and still find some semblance of normalcy in celebrating birthdays or other occasions despite being stuck at home,” said Stewart Ong, managing partner and franchise owner of M Bakery in Manila.

“We have decided to open shop and start baking again to brighten up our customers’ days and make celebrations more special with delicious treats that they can enjoy at home with their families,” added managing partner and head chef Candy Lu.

To prioritize the health and safety of its staff and customers and the freshness of its products, M Bakery is offering a limited menu and is only accepting advance orders for pick-up or delivery during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) period.

Pricing and special flavors will be announced on a weekly basis through M Bakery’s Facebook and Instagram channels.

The ordered products, which are safely prepared and carefully packaged inside the store, can be picked up on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays at the shop between 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to observe proper social distancing.

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Vegan rivals smell blood as virus hits meat supply

NEW YORK -- Champions of plant-based meat see an opportunity to make inroads with American shoppers in the wake of coronavirus outbreaks at US slaughterhouses that have pressured meat supply.

Prices of conventional protein have surged in recent weeks following the temporary closure of at least 18 meat processing plants in the US at a time of already-elevated demand due to panic buying and pantry loading.

The upshot is that producers of plant-based steaks, nuggets and sausages see a chance to win over shoppers from a broader set of consumers.

"Relative to higher prices in the protein market today, we can make significant inroads into consumers and help them expand their choices of proteins," Beyond Meat Chief Executive Ethan Brown said this week.

Brown added that the company plans "heavier discounting" of some products to make them more competitive with old-fashioned meat.

Another emerging player in plant-based meat, Impossible Foods, also from California, this week launched in Kroger, the nation's biggest grocery chain.

The move expands the retail footprint by 18-fold to 2,700 retail locations, said the company, which boasts that its products can be used in stews, sauces or on a barbecue.

"We are moving as quickly as possible to expand with additional outlets and in more retail channels," said Impossible Foods President Dennis Woodside.

Part of the opportunity is that the disruptions from coronavirus comes on the heels of the hit from African swine fever, which has hit Asia's pork supply.

"Agricultural challenges in commodity crop production and processing will be slower to percolate into the food chain, meaning plant-based burgers and chicken alternatives have a window of opportunity right now to present themselves as more reliable alternatives –- or potentially the only choice –- next to empty meat cases in grocery stores," said Sara Olsen of Lux Research.

UPHEAVAL PRESENTS TEST, OPPORTUNITY

Though growing fast, alternative meat accounts for just a tiny portion of the current market.

Beyond Meat estimates that its products have reached just 3.6 percent of US households. The company's revenues in the just-ended quarter more than doubled to $97.1 million, but that is still a pittance compared to the $10.1 billion reported by Tyson Foods in the same period.

But COVID-19 has exposed the meat processing plants as a weak link in the supply chain, denting supply at a time of intense demand.

Fresh beef sales rose by more than 45 percent and chicken by more than 40 percent over the last eight weeks compared with last year, according to Nielsen.

US slaughterhouses have emerged as outbreak hotspots in several states, compelling plant closures, especially for pork and beef. Crowded workspaces are common at the plants, making social distancing difficult.

The Farm Bureau has estimated that pork processing capacity has been reduced by as much as 20 percent and beef processing capacity as much as ten percent.

Costco this week became the latest big grocer to limit consumer meat purchases, joining Kroger and Wegmans.

On Wednesday, fast-food chain Wendy's said some of its restaurants have stopped offering beef products online because of tight supply, prompting it to shift to marketing around chicken for which supplies are more robust.

Alternative meat companies have not been immune from upheaval amid COVID-19.

Beyond Meat withdrew its 2020 financial forecast due to COVID-19 uncertainty and said it had seen a big drop-off in demand from restaurants and other food-service customers that had led it to reroute products to retail stores where sales have been strong. The company will also go slow on some new product launches, such as breakfast sausage offering.

But Beyond Meat's Brown expressed confidence in the company's prospects

"There is an opportunity for the consumer to become more aware of a different model of doing this," he said. "And we want to be as aggressive as we can to provide the consumer with that additional option."

Agence France-Presse

Working in fear, immigrants keep US poultry plants running

Tina says a little prayer every time she heads to work at a Delaware poultry plant, a plea that this will not be the day that the invisible killer picking off her colleagues comes for her.

With the coronavirus shutting down meat plants and threatening the country's food supply, she would rather not be there at all, but President Donald Trump has designated the sector as strategic, and low-paid workers like her as essential. 

The 27-year-old mother works shifts at the Perdue packing plant in Georgetown, a major employer among the thousands of fellow Haitians settled in the area. If she wants to hold on to her job, she feels she has little choice but to clock in for her shifts, despite the risk to her and her family.

"Every day I come, I just pray to God that nothing happens," said Tina -- one of few workers who would agree to speak to a reporters, although even she declined to provide her full name for fear of reprisals.

"I want to go home, I have three kids at home, a baby, but I can't do that," she told AFP, speaking behind a mask. "I have no choice, bills are coming from left to right." 

With no way of knowing who might be carrying the virus, "everyone is afraid of getting sick, people still works close together."

"They don't tell us who has been tested positive. Was that person beside me, talking to me, you never know."

Tina believes too little was done, too late, to protect workers like her.

"I just think that they should close a few weeks so they can clean the whole plant," she said.

The number of coronavirus infections has recently soared in the Delmarva peninsula, which reaches south out of Delaware to eastern Maryland and the northeast of Virginia.

The poultry packing industry has thrived off the cheap labor provided by Haitians and Hispanics, but it also has meant that they have been the first to be cut down by the disease.

Fear of hospitals

The small town of Salisbury, the historic base of Perdue, is home to a community of some 5,000 Haitians, at least 40 percent of whom are infected, according to Habacuc Petion, the owner of Oasis radio, which broadcasts in Creole to an estimated 20,000 listeners in the Delmarva area.

Many work for Perdue, and are refusing to stay home for fear of being sacked.

"Even if they have fever, they take a pill and go to work," said Petion.

"COVID-19 touched home," said the 45-year-old. "My cousin was 44, working at Perdue plant. Beginning of April, he could not breathe, his wife convinced the medics to take him to the hospital. In less than two weeks he died."

The disease's toll has also been boosted by a fear of hospitals and by the language barrier for many Haitians, doctors said.

"When they see people dying in New York hospitals, the lack of material and people put in dumps, they are scared thinking they won't receive the care they need -- and end up dying," said Nadya Julien, a Haitian nurse practitioner in Laurel, Delaware.

Some who speak Creole but little English have trouble explaining their symptoms, she said.

She herself contracted the disease and was hospitalized for six days in April, a story she tells her patients to help them overcome their fears.

'Temptation'

Nurse practitioner Emanie Dorival said she alerted the local authorities very early to the number of cases piling up in her surgery in Seaford, Delaware.

"We are a rural area," she said. "We don't have the capacity in our hospitals if 200 cases show up."

While she agrees the poultry industry is "essential" she says "there is a way to keep it safe for the workers and the community."

Several major US plants where farmers send cattle, pigs and poultry have shut due to the rapid spread of COVID-19 between employees, who are often in close proximity on production lines and on breaks.

Faced with the threat of disruption to the nation's food supply, Trump has ordered meat and poultry plants to remain open during the pandemic that has claimed almost 70,000 lives.

Perdue has said it is doing all it can to ensure workers' safety, taking temperatures, providing protective equipment and practicing social distancing on the production line. Where it is impossible to keep workers a safe distance apart, it said it has installed screens.

It also increased workers' wages -- which Petion described as "a temptation that a lot of people can't resist."

Local health authorities are meanwhile stepping up testing for the virus, with factory workers at the front of the line. In Salisbury, some 1,500 people underwent tests on Friday and Saturday at the town's sports stadium. The results are expected this week.

Agence France-Presse

Shakey's PH now offering frozen mojos in supermarkets

MANILA -- You may want to add Shakey's frozen mojos to your cart in your next grocery run.

This as Shakey's Philippines announced Monday that its best-selling potatoes are now available in ready-to-cook packs at select Robinsons Supermarkets at P375 each. 

In a Facebook post, the restaurant chain also suggested a "mojos hack" that involves rinsing the potato slices before coating with your preferred breading mix and frying.

The frozen mojo packs only include sliced potatoes, but Shakey's Philippines suggested a homemade breading mix recipe that includes garlic powder, all-purpose flour, black pepper, salt, paprika, and thyme.

"Want it crisp and tasty? Follow these 3 easy steps!" it said.


Shakey's Philippines made the announcement more than a month after its Japan counterpart released a recipe for mojos which involved microwaving the spuds first before frying.

news.abs-cbn.com

FamilyMart deploys rolling stores, delivery service

MANILA -- Convenience store chain FamilyMart deployed 2 rolling stores and will soon launch a delivery service to cater to millions cocooned in their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, parent Phoenix Petroleum said Monday.

Fam on Wheels, offering contactless transactions, will be stationed in Phoenix pump stations in Metro Manila from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., the fuel dealer founded by tycoon Dennis Uy told the stock exchange.

Family Mart will offer ordering through Facebook Messenger and deliveries via GrabFood and Lalamove Food from 8 a.m. to
4 p.m., Phoenix said.

Customers can order bento meals, chicken liempo, crispy pata, and ramen, it said. The service was set to launch last Sunday.

Fam on Wheels started serving clients on April 22, 2020 at Phoenix Dahlia in Quezon City and West Service Road in Muntinlupa City.

news.abs-cbn.com

Tea, beer, garlic: How world copes with lockdown

In the US it was toilet paper, in Mexico it's beer and in France, predictably, flour. The goods missing from stores reveal how the world is coping with coronavirus lockdowns.

The winner for most bizarre shortage of 2020 is Afghanistan, where a rumour about a mustachioed newborn advising the purchase of black tea sent people flocking to the shops.

"I will live for two hours and have come to tell you that black tea is the cure to this virus," reads the quote accompanying a picture of the baby, purportedly from the eastern province of Nangarhar, widely shared on Facebook.

The run on the ubiquitous black tea briefly tripled prices before the rush calmed. 

In Mexico, beer -- along with tequila -- is a drink of choice. 

When the country went into its lockdown, the two national beer giants Heineken and Grupo Modelo –- which makes the country's beloved and now unfortunately-named Corona brand –- announced they would stop producing. 

That prompted a wave of panic purchases and a defiant Twitter campaign: #ConLaCervezaNo, or "Don't mess with the beer."

Sri Lanka tried to keep its population from engaging in such vices: it has enforced a total ban on alcohol and cigarettes since its lockdown began on March 20, leading to an explosion in home brewing, an excise official said. 

The do-it-yourself distilling has caused a run on sugar, a key ingredient in producing the local moonshine known as kasippu. 

There had even been suspected "staged" robberies of liquor stores as shop owners tried to sell the precious commodity under the radar.

- Sound mind, sound body -

In Iraq, staying at home means long afternoons watching television or chatting with relatives -– and that requires salted sunflower seeds. 

Supermarkets are running out of the popular snack faster than ever as parents and students wile away hours they would have normally spent at work or school.

For Libyans in the war-ravaged capital Tripoli, homeschooling has been particularly tough.

"We've run out of printer paper, so I've fished out all of my husband's unused old office agendas for them to write down lessons and solve math exercises," said Nadia al-Abed, a stay-at-home mother with three young children whose school has been shuttered. 

"I've been begging them to write as small as they possibly can, bribing them with candy," she added.

Schools, airports and non-essential businesses around the world have been shut down for weeks as countries try to curb the novel coronavirus' lightning-fast spread.

Some are looking to protect themselves by naturally boosting their immunity.

The former Soviet countries of Central Asia have seen a boom in demand -- and in prices -- for wild rue.

The herb, also known as harmala, is traditionally burned in households to ward off illness and protect prosperity.

In Bulgaria, people scrambled to buy ginger and lemons as immunity strengtheners, while in Tunisia, citizens hunted down garlic –- despite World Health Organization warnings that these home remedies do nothing against the novel coronavirus.

- Pastries and plants -

Far and away the most popular coping mechanism, however, has been baking. 

Supermarkets across France, Spain, Greece and other parts of Europe have reported shortages in flour, chocolate and yeast as cooped-up citizens try their hand at elaborate cakes. 

France's entrepreneurial home bakers skip the overwhelmed grocery stores and buy the raw ingredients directly from their local bakeshop to use at home.

Romanians joke about "yeast dealers" making a fortune selling the now-rare leavening agent on the black market.

Fake real estate ads even offer to "swap a downtown flat for one pound of yeast".

And with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan starting, households are stocking up on ingredients for the large sunset meals that will break their daily fasts.

That has made semolina, a golden wheat flour used for bread and pastries, a precious commodity in Algeria.

"The small quantities that are delivered to me, I reserve them for my regular customers," said a shop owner in El-Ashour, a district of Algiers.

In Argentina, it's eggs: 30 of them once cost just 160 pesos, or $2.35, but now run at 240 pesos or $3.52.

If many countries emerge from their lockdowns with a new class of professional chefs, Australia will see home gardens blooming all over the country.

"We've seen an increase in popularity across all plant types over the past month," said Alex Newman of the Bunnings Warehouse hardware store.

In a sign that Australians are bracing themselves for a longer lockdown, Bunnings' most popular online guide includes tips on the fastest-growing plants to create a screen from neighbors -- providing extra privacy for those staying at home.

Agence France-Presse

G20 to ensure 'sufficient' food supply during pandemic

RIYADH -- G20 agriculture ministers on Tuesday pledged to ensure "sufficient" global food supplies amid the coronavirus pandemic as the UN warned the number of people facing acute hunger globally could nearly double.

"We will work together to help ensure that sufficient, safe, affordable, and nutritious food continues to be available and accessible to all people, including the poorest, the most vulnerable, and displaced people," said the ministers from the 20 most advanced economies.

"Under the current challenging circumstances, we stress the importance of avoiding food losses and waste caused by disruptions throughout food supply chains, which could exacerbate food insecurity and nutrition risks and economic loss," they said after a virtual meeting hosted by the group's current president Saudi Arabia.

As COVID-19 lockdowns disrupt the global economy, the G20 ministers also said they were working to prevent "excessive food price volatility" in international markets.

The ministers stressed it was important that coronavirus restrictions do not create "unnecessary barriers" to trade and food supply chains.

The number of people facing acute food insecurity could increase to 265 million in 2020, from 135 million in 2019, as a result of the economic impact of COVID-19, the United Nation's World Food Program warned on Tuesday.

The warning came as a report by the WFP and its partners said food insecurity had already risen last year before the outbreak of the coronavirus crisis.

It found that 135 million people in 55 countries were living in acute food crises or outright humanitarian emergencies last year.

Agence France-Presse

Asia pivots towards plants for protein as coronavirus stirs meat safety fears

HONG KONG - Demand for plant-based protein foods is surging in Asia, suppliers say, as suspicion over possible links between wild animal meat and the new coronavirus drives some consumers, particularly in Hong Kong and mainland China, to rethink diets.

Though still a tiny business compared to Asia's giant meat supply chain, vegetarian alternatives to meat, dairy and seafood are gaining growing custom from people like Hong Kong-based fitness trainer Mike Lee.

"Because of the coronavirus, people have started to pay more attention to their diet and health," said Lee, 40, serving up burritos in his kitchen made using a plant-based pork alternative. "People now are more afraid of getting sick."

Even before the coronavirus pandemic, consultancy Euromonitor last year predicted China's 'free from meat' market, including plant-based products meant to replace meat, would be worth nearly $12 billion by 2023, up from just under $10 billion in 2018.

That had already attracted interest from leading US players like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods, with coffee chain Starbucks Corp and Yum China's KFC fast food chain announcing plans this week to get in on the act with plant-based product promotions.

"Ironically and unfortunately we have such a dramatic outbreak, devastating everyone and everywhere, which becomes this massive catalyst," said David Yeung, founder of Hong Kong-based Green Monday, which supplies products from Beyond Meat across Asia. The global death toll from the pandemic has now topped 170,000, with more than 4,600 reported dead in mainland China.

Amid restaurant closures, social distancing restrictions and growing numbers of people cooking more at home, online food purchases have surged in many markets in Asia: Distributors say plant-based goods, mostly priced competitively compared with animal products, have proved no exception. Many parts of Asia have long used non-meat ingredients like tofu to produce meat-like food experiences.

'OMNIPORK', MUNG BEAN EGGS

China remains the world's biggest consumer of meat, with a retail value equal to roughly $170 billion annually, according to Euromonitor. On that scale, meat will dwarf alternative products for many years to come.

But Green Monday's Yeung said his company's online sales have more than doubled in the last 2 months, citing the impact of the coronavirus: Among the most popular purchases is a pork substitute called Omnipork, used in dumplings, noodles and rice, while Beyond burgers, plant-based chicken nuggets and non-dairy milks have also been doing well, he said.

JUST, a San Francisco-based company that makes egg products from mung beans, says its sales on Chinese ecommerce platforms JD.com and Tmall of JUST Egg have surged 30 percent since the coronavirus outbreak.

At Impossible Foods, Nick Halla, senior vice president for international, said China's need for meat options was growing rapidly and the country is their most important target market globally.

Impossible Foods is working through the regulatory process to enter mainland China but debuted its replacement beef product to 40,000 consumers in November last year at a trade show in Shanghai.

Meanwhile restaurant firm Yum China's KFC chain will sell plant-based fried chicken for the first time in China at 3 outlets in a promotion between April 28 and 30. The nuggets will be supplied by US agribusiness giant Cargill Ltd.

And Starbucks said on Monday it would roll out a new plant-based lunch menu in China this week, launching Beyond Meat's products. The world's biggest coffee chain has now reopened most of its stores in China.

CHINA'S BEYOND MEAT?

Online food group Deliveroo, which delivers meals including Impossible burgers around Hong Kong, said first-quarter growth in orders of vegan food in the city matched a doubling in orders of other food compared with a year earlier.

On the mainland, China's Zhenmeat - sometimes referred to by state media as the country's answer to Beyond Meat - is betting on sales booming once restaurants resume normal business across the country.

Vince Lu, chief executive and founder, said the company is planning to expand into Shanghai and Shenzhen from Beijing, where it currently sells its beef substitute products in 50 restaurants.

"After the coronavirus, Chinese people have more consciousness not to eat wild animals and eat the right sources of protein," said Lu.

In his Hong Kong kitchen, fitness trainer Lee said the coronavirus has brought huge change to life in the city, including dining habits.

"One year ago, when we were sick, no matter it was cold, flu or fever, we still went out with friends and ate hotpot together with no problem at all," he said. "But now if you have a mild sore throat, when you cough a bit, people next to you will jump ten meters away from you."

-reuters-

Mega sardines seeks to raise lockdown capacity to meet demand

MANILA -- Canned sardines maker Mega Global said Thursday it was working to increase capacity to meet heightened demand during the Luzon lockdown.

Mega is transporting employees to its plant in Zamboanga to raise capacity to 75 percent from 50 percent, said its founder, William Tiu Lim.



The company's plant in Valenzuela City north of Metro Manila is helping the company meet demand in the region, he told ANC.

"We are looking at ways and means to get more people coming in so capacity will be bigger," he said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

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

Donut chains J.Co, Krispy Kreme reopen select stores for delivery, pickup

MANILA -- After Dunkin, two more donut chains have reopened select stores in the Philippines as the enhanced community quarantine continues.

In posts on their respective social media pages, J.Co and Krispy Kreme announced that customers can order from a limited menu for pickup and delivery starting Monday, April 13.

Krispy Kreme said it is also open for drive-thru.

Check out their available branches below:

More food and beverage establishments are slowly reopening weeks after quarantines were imposed across the country due to the novel coronavirus.

Dine-in services remain prohibited to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which is transmitted through respiratory droplets. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Dunkin' reopens select branches in Metro Manila for delivery

MANILA -- Dunkin' has reopened select branches in Metro Manila to accommodate customers who need their donut and coffee fix amid the enhanced community quarantine.

Through Facebook, Dunkin' has been giving updates on branches that are open for delivery, with orders to be made via GrabFood, LalaFood, and Angkas Food.

The latest announcement came on Monday, which included three branches in Makati and one in Pasay.

In a previous post, Dunkin' said it has reopened a store each in Pasig, Mandaluyong, and Quezon City after closing all of its Metro Manila branches last March. 

An updated list of branches can be found here.

As of Monday, available products for delivery include a pre-packed "assorted barkada bundle" which contains two pieces each of Strawberry Frost, Boston Kreme, Bavarian Filled, Choco Butternut, Choco Nutty Tiramisu, and Quezo Duo donuts.

Customers can also order brewed coffee for eight persons and a ground coffee pouch good for 16 cups.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

World faces food crisis in wake of coronavirus: UN, WTO

PARIS - The heads of three global agencies warned Wednesday of the risk of a worldwide "food shortage" if authorities fail to manage the ongoing coronavirus crisis properly.

Many governments around the world have put their populations on lockdown causing severe slow-downs in international trade and food supply chains.

Panic buying by people going into confinement has already demonstrated the fragility of supply chains as supermarket shelves emptied in many countries.

"Uncertainty about food availability can spark a wave of export restrictions, creating a shortage on the global market," said the joint text signed by Qu Dongyu, head of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO) and Roberto Azevedo, director of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

"In the midst of the COVID-19 lockdowns, every effort must be made to ensure that trade flows as freely as possible, especially to avoid food shortage(s)" from developing, they said in their statement.

"When acting to protect the health and well-being of their citizens, countries should ensure that any trade-related measures do not disrupt the food supply chain," they added.

Over the longer-term confinement orders and travel restrictions risk causing disruptions in agricultural production due to the unavailability of agricultural labor and the inability to get food to markets.

"Such disruptions including hampering the movement of agricultural and food industry workers and extending border delays for food containers, result in the spoilage of perishables and increasing food waste," said the three leaders.

They also stressed the need to protect employees engaged in food production, processing and distribution, both for their own health and that of others, as well as to maintain food supply chains.

"It is at times like these that more, not less, international cooperation is essential," they said.

"We must ensure that our response to COVID-19 does not unintentionally create unwarranted shortages of essential items and exacerbate hunger and malnutrition."

Agence France-Presse

KC Concepcion sends food to frontliners

MANILA — KC Concepcion is among the local celebrities who are helping frontliners amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. 

In an Instagram post on Tuesday, Concepcion shared photos of the food she sent to a hospital in Quezon City.

“Done delivering 200 jars of ready-to-eat chicken and pork adobo to our frontliners at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center. Perpetual Help Medical Center - Las Piñas, you're next,” Concepcion wrote.

source: news.abs-cbn.com