Kenya's fries crisis

Business Daily

BBC

News, Business

4.4 • 796 Ratings

🗓️ 13 January 2022

⏱️ 18 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Why can't multinationals like KFC source their ingredients locally? A shortage of fries at KFC restaurants in Kenya has led many to call for a boycott of the chain after it transpired that the company imported all of its potatoes, despite them being abundantly grown in the country. Potatoes are Kenya's second-most consumed crop after maize, and are cultivated mostly by small-scale farmers. As Covid hits global supply chains and words like sustainability and climate gain greater importance, is it time for multinationals to start looking closer to home for their goods? Kathambi Kaaria is a climate change and sustainability advisor in Nairobi and comes from Meru, a potato growing region of Kenya. She told Tamasin Ford that when KFC arrived in the country eleven years ago she tried to supply them potatoes. Leonard Mudachi, the CEO of a Kenyan restaurant management company Branded Restaurants Africa Ltd, said he wasn’t surprised to learn that KFC imports its chips but does think that multinational companies should start scrutinizing how and where they get their produce from. John Quelch is the Dean of the Miami University Herbert Business School in the United States. He told Tamasin that the issue for a major international brand is the quality and consistency of locally sourced produce and that one mistake by one supplier can lead to a massive fallout for the companies.

(A boy looks at potatoes for sale in a market in the Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya; Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Tamerson Ford. Welcome to Business Daily from the BBC. Today we're talking about the
0:07.6	KFC chip shortage in Kenya. It sparked social media outrage, not because people couldn't buy fries,
0:15.1	but because they found out KFC imports its potatoes. KFC is letting down our Kenyan farmers. I think I will boycott yes
0:24.3	because of what they are doing. As far as buying from Kenyan farmers is concerned, why shouldn't
0:29.1	they and why haven't they already? They are getting their money from us, Kenyan. So why should
0:33.5	they not bring something back to us? KFC now says it's going to start looking into using Kenyan potatoes.
0:41.2	If they are importing potatoes or they are importing a cut, I think it's cut and frozen chips.
0:46.5	Why are they doing so?
0:48.5	We are growing potatoes.
0:50.0	Why aren't our potatoes good enough?
0:51.7	What can we do to make them better?
0:53.2	As COVID hits global supply chains and words like sustainability and climate gain greater importance,
1:01.3	we ask the question, is it time for multinationals to start looking closer to home for their goods?
1:08.3	That's in today's Business Daily from the BBC.
1:13.5	On the thirdrd of January, the official KFC Twitter account in Kenya tweeted this.
1:20.7	Fam, it was truly a furaha December.
1:24.2	Mliquhushere with your KFC faves.
1:27.1	You all loved our chips a little too much and we've run out sorry our team is working hard to resolve the issue
1:34.8	no chips that's potato chips not computer chips in all 22 of its restaurants around the country
1:42.2	it didn't take long for people to find out that KFC
1:45.6	imports its chips, already cut, blanched and frozen, despite potatoes being one of Kenya's main
1:52.8	crops. It sparked a storm on social media. Hashtag boycott KFC began trending on Twitter
	...

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