August 4, 2011

"KFC leaves Fiji amid crumbs row."

Perplexing headline of the day. It's "row" as in dispute, and Kentucky Fried Chicken is having a row in Fiji that involves, literally, crumbs. Often people fight over figurative crumbs. "We're fighting over crumbs!" — meaning there's little left to fight over. But KFC uses real crumbs in the making of the famous chicken, and it thinks the treatment it's getting from Fiji is... crummy.

19 comments:

chickelit said...

Agriculture permanent secretary Colonel Mason Smith said the firm was using mischievous public relations tactics.

To quote R. Crumb: "you can't make this shit up".

traditionalguy said...

Sounds like the Obama Government style also rules in Fiji.

It is old fashioned extortion in the name of "Health", or whatever.

That is the way of the terrorists who are taking businesses hostage in the world today.

It has become a fierce world.

Ironic enough that such tricks are why the Constitution was made with a Commerce Clause for supremacy.

But today it is the Feds who are doing it to busineses, not the States. It is for "Health", of course.

How long until the election is it?

Carol_Herman said...

It's a franchise! This is not about chicken!

Chickens grow locally, or they arrive frozen. And, for KFC to make a profit for the franchisee ... you gotta go crap on all the local businesses. Which is what happened in America!

Which is a foolish thing.

But at least if you want fried chicken ... you get a choice. Cardboard in a cardboard box.

Or a local place that uses cast iron. Stove top. And, gets it right.

Or you do this at home. And, spend hours cleaning grease off of your walls.

A good piece of chicken shouldn't depend on stock prices.

clint said...

I love the last quote in the article.

"The truth is BAF has only temporarily withheld two cartons of milk and egg mix because KFC did not have the required documentation. We have been waiting for the veterinary certificate since early May [2011]. When this is provided, we'll be able to release the cartons."

Yum.

Can I have some KFC made with milk and eggs that have been sitting at the port for three months?

Carol_Herman said...

Jimmy Rogers who went to Columbia ... around the time George Soros was there. And, Benjamin Graham had set the stage for studying the stock market by using "tea cups" ...

Was brought to my attention ... by my mom. Who used to watch financial news on the TV. Jimmy Rogers would come out. And, sit on a stool. And, give you his take on the stock markets (around the world). Including Commodities (which I don't understand.)

Then, around the age of 50 ... rich enough to retire ... Jimmy Rogers decided to spend two years going around the world. On his Harley.

From this, he wrote INVESTMENT BIKER. Followed ten years later, by another non-fiction appraisal of different economies. (Both books are excellent.) Still true, too.

In the first one, he airlifts the Harleys. (He took a female companion.) To Ireland. So that's the first discourse.

Then, he gets to England. And, then the "Continent." And, he loops through countries.

My most favorite story occurs in Istanbul. Where he needs a mirror (now for his Mercedes). It takes more than a month.

So, his observations include that Turkey has a youthful population. But, alas, wall-to-wall-corruption. He said Turkey would never get included into any global company ... because on-the-ground, you need so many stamps thrugh customs. That his car sat, unused. Because of a broken mirror. Until 1000 palms got serviced by graft.

I'd bet Fiji is no different.

And, as long as you can have a thriving retail economy ... you're not in the shit hole europe (except for Germany) stuck its economies.

And, you're not in the USA, which for no good reason, became dependent on imports.

You know what? It's great when you see the LOCALS win! Even when they're so corrupt ... all you'd notice are all the palms out.

d-day said...

This article has nothing to do with crumbs. It's not a crumb coating--it's flour. KFC ships its restaurants pieces of frozen unprocessed chicken and the rest is all made at the store from flour, not crumbs.

Highly misleading. I demand a refund.

Ken B said...

I understood the headline instantly. All that is required is that know what a row is. Are homonyms really that hard? I had a date to eat dates with my date on that date. Perplexing?

RichardS said...

If they were a fish restaurant, they might have a shad roe!

Allen Edwards said...

One small point (don't think it's been noticed):

"Row" as a "boisterous argument" is pronounced to rhyme with "cow", got "go".

WV: pecuplea - money request?

Allen Edwards said...

... and the faux-grammarian is brought "low"

Should be 'NOT "go"'

WV: nonesi - hmmmmmm?

Synova said...

Heh.

Sounds like the Philippines.

The military refused to buy milk produced in the Philippines because the processing plants didn't meet our standards. They arranged to get milk from New Zealand. When it arrived the mega-company that owned milk distribution (and the biggest beer company) arranged to have it delayed in port so that it was usually sour before we got it.

People whine about corruption in the US but it's nothing like where corruption is business as usual.

Agriculture permanent secretary Colonel Mason Smith?

Seriously?

Hold up (and I'm thinking "cartons" is probably "containers") perishable food and promise to release it later when the paperwork is done? You know that it's "Why aren't you buying milk and eggs from my buddies?" And, "Who are you to think you don't need to show your respect with personal (monetary) gestures of gratitude?"

tree hugging sister said...

mischievous public relations tactics.

Hilarious.

Alex said...

Carol - I'll have fried chicken as long as the grease remains on YOUR walls.

William said...

Fiji has a department for biosecurity. Biosecurity. I like the sound of that. Lots of good paying jobs in that department. If Fiji is alert to the dangers posed by KFC crumbs, can America afford to be less vigilant. I think we would all feel safer if federal biosecurity agents patted down those chickens. My anecdotal evidence from NYC leads me to believe that many near eastern agents have infiltrated the Popeye's chain.

Toshstu said...

Did someone say Fije?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=683cbW7jdG4

Anonymous said...

The big question: why does KFC often run out of chicken? McDonald's and Burger King do not run out of hamburgers. Taco Bell does not run out of burritos. So why does KFC run out of chicken?

Peter

Michael K said...

Without the ethnicities of those involved, you can't figure out what is going on. If the KFC franchise is, for example, owned by an ethnic Indian, all is explained.

SteveR said...

The reality is those island nations have some very significant dangers associated with goods brought on island. The bad news is the screening process is full of incompetance and corruption.

Murph said...

Michael K hit the nail on the head - the ethnic component is key to disputes in Fiji. The catalyst for the military junta years ago was the probability that a non-native, non-ethnic Fijian would be elected Prime Minister.

Having spent a considerable amount of time on Fiji, I can attest that the ethnic squabbling would trigger a government agency to take bogus official actions as a tool to shut down any business owned or operated by a non-native.