Fast Food Scandal

By: Michael Scuderi

KFC and McDonalds get some percentage of their meat from Shanghai Husi food Co., which is run by the OSI group. They were under investigation when a video of their meat processing line was leaked to the media. This footage contained horrifying clips of workers blending old meat with new fresh meat and even showed some footage of workers scooping meat up off the floor and putting it back into the production lines. KFC is the largest fast food company in China, where is runs 4,600 stores nationwide. The second largest is McDonalds, even though it only runs a mere 2,000 stores. Both companies have been supplied by Shanghai Husi Food Company. And both companies claim that they have stopped using meat from that supplier since finding this information out. In light of this scandal, KFC took a major hit and, for damage control, they attempted to “reconnect” with their consumer base by revamping the entire menu, refurnishing and renovating their stores and even decided to offer free Wi-Fi in all of their location. Many consumers were still enraged by yet another meat scandal in the food industry. They even went after KFC’s mascot Kernel Sanders by posting pictures of Kernel sanders holding a cleaver in one hand and also holding a blood soaked smock in the other. This is another huge scandal for the fast food industry that seems to never go away. So the real question we should be asking is: Is the brand at fault for these occurrences or should we blame the supplier? Consumers of western products have grown to expect a very safe and high quality product, they expect this because that is exactly what Western companies advertise their products to be. But what most western consumers don’t realize is that these Western companies are supplied by companies in China, who in turn have their own suppliers. So you can consider it false advertising when a product is said to be safe and of high quality because at the end of the day you do not know exactly where that product came from or how it was processed and how it ended up landing on your plate. Consumers hold one brand responsible for their whole supply chain, which is very challenging because supply chains can be constantly changing especially with China’s “fragmented nature”. Should consumers hold single brands responsible for their suppliers, or should they accept that the company has made yet another mistake and just take the free Wi-Fi and move on with their lives. This food supplier didn’t only supply KFC and McDonalds, but has supplied many other food companies around the world and the scariest part about the scandal, which sets it apart from the other scandals, is that the supplier was at one time a unit of a much larger American company. To recap, the only way you truly know that your food is fresh safe and of good quality is if you grow it in your backyard.

Source: http://adage.com/article/global-news/mcdonald-s-kfc-food-safety-scare-china/294218/