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CHICKEN RESTAURANT KFC plans to open 40 new outlets across the UK and Ireland this year, creating 1,600 jobs.
The expansion comes at the same time as a £40 million refurbishment plan for its existing 160 restaurants. The company says it wants to create a “more modern, welcoming environment” for diners.
New developments include a click-and-collect app, equipment to keep food fresh for longer and cookers that use less oil. There are also plans to introduce new ‘lighter options’, an updated kids’ menu, new fries and high-quality coffee.
Last year, KFC opened 40 restaurants in the UK and Ireland, investing £40 million. According to a statement released today, the firm has recorded seven consecutive years of same-store-sales growth.
“By opening new sites, improving the customer experience, introducing new technology and investing in our people, we’re confident that we will be well-placed to continue our upward trajectory,” said Martin Shuker, Managing Director, KFC UK & Ireland.
About 24,000 people are employed by KFC globally.
Ah yes. I see we’re attracting foreign direct investment with our knowledge based economy.
Why do bulimics love kfc?
Because it comes with a bucket.
@James Murphy, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt, that you meant no offense to those suffering from this dreadful condition, but please be careful , a lot of people could be very offended .
Of all fast foods I am very partial to a bit of KFC..
Wish they’d make half them Taco Bells. Same parent company.
Hillbilly’s chicken is like sooooo much nicer….
Better than Super macs.
Never tasted taco belle or hillbilly yet but I treat myself to a KFC the idd time ( maybe once every few months).
No its not
See that lovely succulent chicken see whats pumped down the throats of the chickens that makes them so fat so quick i’ll take my chances with the family butcher .Jobs great eating steroid riddled chicken not so great.
I’ll tell you something, if the quality of their food is anything like it is where I live, forget it , I tried it once and it was soggy and tasteless, very disappointing , won’t go there again.
I can feel my arteries tightening already… Horrible food
Obesity Ireland here we come. And it’s hormone induced chicken they use!!!
They use a hormone pumped into chickens that increases their breast size faster so they are ready to be slaughtered sooner. Now take the increase consumption of chicken and earlier puberty rate of particularly girls.
Makes you think??????????
Equipment to keep food fresh for longer. Hmmmmmmm
How can this be good for society when there is epidemic diabetics and fast growing obesity problems.
Get with the program, we live in a capitalism society, its all about making money, why else would we elect a right wing government if we really cared about society, as Thatcher said, there is no such thing as society, only individuals.
Don’t like it, don’t eat it. Simples.
To Leight: sure its simple… and what about the health cost? I dont eat there but i still have to pay for obese people’s treatment. How’s that fair?
And what about smokers? Alcoholics? Drug use? Idiots who injure themselves? TV licenses? Hell, if anyone has a child you contribute towards it via the child allowance. That’s the thing with taxes. You don’t get a say were it goes.
Would you prefer the person was refused treatment and died?
@Yoman: because they have to pay for whatever eventually takes you out of the game. We all have to go some way.
I dont want anyone being refused treatment but I would like a bit more control with fast food and bad food in general.
I am really annoyed when a normal patient has to wait cause a very fat patient is considered more risky…. (cf pregnant women).
I mean we all agree its illegal to sale alcohol and cigarettes to kids but when it comes to shit food we turn a blind eye….diseases related to obesete is costing a complete fortune!
We do have a say about how our taxes are spent by the way.. its call election.
Well now there is an area worthy of a bit of debate. I don’t think anyone would claim that a bit of McDonalds or a KFC occasionally is harmful to kids but unfortunately it’s pretty much unenforceable to prevent them from having it frequently.
About pregnancy I meant healthy pregnant women vs unhealthy pregnant women. Statistics in the UK shows that healty pregnant women are not properly monitored because too much time is spent on unhealty pregnant women…
@yoman…fast food is not the sole cause of obesity. There has been a massive cultural change over the last 20 years where more and more kids spend their days stuck indoors playing computer games. Even those that eat relatively healthily are overweight because they don’t burn off the calories they take in.
I used to be treated to McDonalds on a weekly basis when I grew up but spent all my evenings after school and most of my weekends out and about climbing trees, playing football, tip-the-can, runaway-knock, wild rover, and just general mucking about.
The key to health is a balanced lifestyle…if you are active enough then you can treat yourself more often and still stay in shape…
It’s not the sole cause, bit the food served would not be classified as healthy food.
Yeeeaaahhh!!!!…….. more minimum pay jobs.
Jobs bridge will be stuffed with ‘internships’ great for all the young engineers straight out of college. 4 years well spent.
Isn’t better for some 18yr olds to have to a job rather than stitting at home drawing the dole.
It’s easier to get another job when you have some work history than none at all.
If I was an employer and had a vacancy to fill for an apprentice. Who would I choose? Johnny that left school at 18 and sat on his arse drawing the dole for a couple years or Tommy that went to the same school and left at the same time but went to work with KFC and has a work history and glowing references.
So rather than being begrudgers be happy that someone is getting employment out it.
Kinda funny this , there’s an article a few spaces down saying how young kids aren’t doing enough PE In school
And here is the conspiracy bit:
The governent gives them tax concessions to set up , to fed our nation fat food full of chemicals which in time will turn us in to a nation like the US (obese and sick). We then need loads of medicines, drugs, surgery , etc which big phara will happily supply at a cost of billions, and they pay a dividend and royalties to the state who now have more money to start the cycle again.
Oh and everyone win and makes loads of money excepts the ordinary guy with the snack box, he’s f### ed
@Michael Ruoghan
I will try my best to keep my two children 9 and 11 as far away as possible from this junk. You are what you eat.
Yeah, or it’s all a big conspiracy by Ben Dunne to create an obese society which will in turn lead at least 1 in 4 of the fatties to rethink their lifestyle and join his Gym?
Or the towel companies, who are conspiring to create an obese society which will in turn lead at least 1 in 4 of the fatties to rethink their lifestyle and join Ben Dunnes Gym, but half of them would be males who would not be allowed to to dry their pubic hair with his hand dryers for health and safety reasons and instead must use towels, purchased by Ben Dunne from said towel companies.
What a scary thought.
Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medics be thy food”
Hippocrates 460 BC
I think he was trying to say something way back then !!!
Except that your conspiracy theory completely forgot about the cost all of that has to the health service which the Government has to pay for!
You’re actually suggesting that governments can profit from an obesity epidemic? I wouldn’t even dignify your story/ramblings by calling it a “theory”.
The government pay for nothing, the people pay for every thing, it’s called tax, levies, paye, prsi , house hold charge, water charge, property tax, car tax…….. Shall I go on. ?
So your response is instead to be pedantic.
Fair pkay to you. I wonder who red thumb you…. stupid people I guess
@ignorant, your name says it all !!!
I blame the catholic church which throughout its domination of Irish education system failed to provide proper nutrition education condemning us all to heart disease. While I am at it I may as well blame the Government. How dare they give permission for this retrograde step in the development of Irelands reputation for fine cuisine.
I see what you did there ^_^
So do I!!!!
That’s finger lickin’ good news
Obesity rules, welcome to the new world……. Fat boy ….fat girl….
Scary… people should watch food inc. They will never go to a fast food anymore
Job creation starts with sustained exporting of products not minimum wage staff handing out hormone pumped 6 week old chickens to the fat underclass Irish.
It won’t be just the under class as you call them. It will be Irish society who will head out on a Sunday for a treat !!
The underclass head out every day, that’s the problem.
Only in a recession can these ‘food’ outlets thrive. Yeh sure its a positive for jobs but obesity and heart disease will also be rubbing it’s hands.
Heart disease creates vacancies
Pure muck, wouldn’t touch the stuff! Don’t see them lasting here unless people lose their taste buds!!
You have way too much faith in people’s desire to not eat fast food
Although I agree it’s pure muck the fact that they’ve opened a 2nd KFC in Blanchardstown shopping centre seems to suggest that they are here to stay. Expect more of the same.
They have two in the same shopping centre? In case you don’t have the energy to walk to the first?
They will last because of the addictive ingredients they use
Good news for people who want / need employment in low level service based jobs.
Otherwise, would love to hear 1600 ‘skilled’ jobs being announced.
Its no wonder there are overweight people in this country.
The word “No” is the problem.
@ Fatness – Horrible food you say. I think you are in denial.
The families On the ad’s look so happy to be tucking in to a bucket of this crap. I must be missing something! No more home cooking for me
Oooh KFC chicken skin an gravy. Mmmmmmm
Best tasting fast food going but this is only due to science and the great equilibrium that they have going between their trans fats and spices. Colonel sanders plan of world wide domination almost complete!! Next stop. Healthy Nandos
#badnewsforchickens
Never got the whole KFC attraction dont think the chicken is great & their chips are like cardboard . . .
And they serve Pepsi – yuck!
Paul . Pepsi own kfc
A lot with a load of other companies in the food industry
Shite food and greasy as feck. Their ‘snack boxes’ are pitiful.
@Padraig, fully agree with you.
Jesus. What a bunch of arrogant people you are. Calling people names and looking down their nose because they are overweight!, I don’t have children but I contribute to the exchequer to keep the vast majority of people that do have children in benefits and children’s allowance. How dare you!! Most of you knocking fast food will happily spend your money in rubbish from the supermarket. Yes I’m overweight but I don’t deny my euros being spent on others who made poor lifesttyle choices So a woman goes to her GP after years of abuse and he/she says. ‘Ah well it’s your own fault. I can’t treat you!, Your attitude to overweight people is both ignorant and disgusting.
Mary Jordan. U got a kind heart.
@Mary Jordan, I fully agree with you.
They might even start to include actual chicken on their menus, instead of genetically modified blobs of force fed creatures. # puremuck.com
Wtf !!! Krusty flipping crab is coming to Ireland…….when’s sponge bob wet pants coming haha
That’s more umpa lumpas for us to navigate around. People should try eat healthier. The clog up their arteries, waistlines and our hospitals. I’ve been fat, have fat family and friends and have no sympathy for them and their inability to shovel sh|te into their gobs. Now and again is fine. Lecture over. The mass is over. Go in peace :)
We are not friends yet Mary but I’m happy to spend time introducing you to a healthier nutrition plan and a gentle exercise program to start if it means you live longer for your family?
Thanks Keith. I apologise for the name calling. Got caught in the heat of this discussion. Your suggestion is actually one of the best on this thread. What annoys me is the pure hate that is sometimes vented against fat or overweight people. There could be many many reasons why a person is the way they are but does that give others the right to mock belittle and sneer.
Has no one read about KFC in Ireland they can’t call themselves Kentucky fried chicken anymore because they aren’t classed as chickens they tube feed genetically modified chickens with less bones and no feathers to save money I can’t find a link cos I’m computer illiterate but it’s a known fact in oz at the min
http://www.snopes.com/food/tainted/kfc.asp
Sigh
I don’t eat fast food but at least I have real reasons
Stop hanging out with the tinfoil hat brigade
Let them eat chicken
Great , just what the obesity epademic needs.Kentucky Fried Chemicals.
Its anything but chicken
They’d want to go sort out the ‘new’ one in Wexford then…. No-one eats out of it. A lot of families apparently fell ‘ill’ after eating from it. I know I did.
Word spreads fast in a small town and the place has to be loosing a fortune. Its always empty now. I complained to the UK office about the quality of it 3yrs ago and it fell on deaf ears so i have no sympathy if it closes, except for the poor people who will be made unemployed.
No 1. The 5 million questions when you go to order drives me mad. No 2. The fries you would count on one hand. No.3 The fries are cold. No 4. I can’t get diet coke but I do love my zinger burger
I like that you have diet coke with your junk food.
Have you seen what’s in diet coke, it way worse than ordinary coke, which is lethal
YouTube “KFC chicken abuse” f@&k KFC
Should be great news for all the south Asians who mysteriously have entered the country.
The world is such a eff’d place ,
Where some of the most profitable cimpanies in the world sell products that kill u directly or indirectly.
Cigarettes
Weapons
Junk food
Most people who eat fast food are stupid ……..
As they say at BK ….. oh , no wait
I’m lovin it?
Kentucky Fried Chiawawa.
So good…
Thats some finger lickin good news!
Very sustainable jobs!!….who exactly will be buying these type of products, pure spin!
Horrible shite
“The UK and Ireland”?
I bet the majority of these new shops and the majority of the jobs will go to the UK. I’d say we’d get maybe 4-5 new KFC locations out of the 40.
If you could get a meal with McDonalds fries, and KFC’s Fillet Tower burger, that’d be wicked! It’s not often I have one, but they do taste yummy.
Finger lickin journal.ie #notnewsanyone?
Ok fatten our kids up! What the f@@k is it coming to when there is an increase in jobs in the fast food industry . Sums it up .
Here we come obesity heart-disease diabetes and the lik..dis some worst crap u can eat!!wont say kinda people that eat it ere in states,cheap awful fast food!even if creates jobs,this defo “not the right”way to go
have your say