KFC no longer sells chicken nuggets at some of its restaurants in Victoria and South Australia, citing unspecified supply chain issues.
The fast food giant insisted this supply chain “disruption” has nothing to do with the bird flu outbreak ravaging chicken farms in the state of Victoria.
With nuggets off the menu, diners will be offered popcorn chicken as an alternative.
KFC no longer sells chicken nuggets at some of its restaurants in Victoria and South Australia, citing unspecified supply chain issues (file image)
“There has been a very small disruption within our supply chain, meaning some KFC restaurants in Victoria and South Australia will not serve nuggets and will offer popcorn chicken as a replacement in our shared meals,” a spokesperson said.
‘We can confirm that this supply problem is not related to the bird flu outbreak.
“We are working with our suppliers to get things back on track and resupply affected areas as soon as possible.”
Six Victorian poultry farms have reported cases of bird flu, raising fears of egg shortages and mass bird culls.
The spread of the virus globally has fueled online conspiracy theories and misinformation about risks to the food supply and Covid-style lockdowns.
Six Victorian poultry farms have reported cases of bird flu, raising fears of egg shortages and mass bird culls (file image)
Dozens of outlandish claims are circulating on Facebook, TikTok and X about deliberately injecting bird flu into animals to destroy food supplies.
Other social media users predict that the World Health Organization will somehow use the outbreak as a pretext to declare martial law or cancel national elections.
Scientists and industry experts have refuted those claims, saying the risk to human health in Australia remains low and an egg shortage is unlikely.
They say the most dangerous strain of bird flu (H5N1) spreading in North America and Europe is not the same as the two (H7N3 and H7N9) detected in Victoria.
Australian Chicken Producers Council chief executive Dr Joanna Sillince says the response to the local outbreak has been “textbook”, with governments and industry working “in perfect harmony”.
Dr Sillince also rejected claims of possible food shortages.
“There is no shortage of eggs in Victoria,” he said. “Poultry and eggs are perfectly safe to eat.”