KFC, which has over 900 branches in the UK and Ireland and employs around 24,000 people, has announced it will begin shutting its sites from tonight, and all closing by Wednesday until further notice.
The group posted the following message:
'We’ve decided, together with our franchise partners, to begin closing our restaurants to help protect the wellbeing and safety of our teams and of our guests.
We’re committed to doing this in the right way and are focussed on closing responsibly – to prepare our restaurant teams, help our suppliers and minimise food waste. All our restaurants will begin closing from the end of this evening (23rd March) until further notice.
It’s not a decision we’ve taken lightly, but it’s in the best interests of both our incredible teams and all the fans that love our chicken.
Speaking of chicken, we serve fresh, quality food, so we’re working really hard to prevent as much going to waste as possible. Over the coming days, we’ll find safe and efficient ways to distribute any unused food – which will include working with our longstanding Food Donation Scheme partners to make sure we’re giving to those who need it most. This is already underway in cities across the country and we’re so grateful to our partners for their continued support.
Finally, to all of our teams who have been working under such tricky and uncertain circumstances, we thank you deeply. You’ve been amazing.
More updates to come – we’ll keep you posted.
Until then, stay safe and look after each other… we’re looking forward to winging our way back to you soon!'