Lettuce shortage forces KFC to put cabbage in burgers; some Subway stores run out

Australia is facing a lettuce shortage that has led to soaring prices and spurred global fast food giant KFC to put cabbage in its burgers, while some Subway outlets are making do without the staple vegetable.

KFC notified customers that it will use a blend of lettuce and cabbage throughout its restaurants, citing supply chain disruptions after heavy flooding across the east coast wiped out much of the lettuce crop earlier in the year.

KFC is running out of lettuce.

Growers in Queensland’s Lockyer Valley typically supply much of Australia’s lettuce crop during winter when the weather in southern farming regions is too cold. However, they have been hit with extreme rain over the last 12 months, wiping out crops that typically take at least 10 weeks to grow.

Bill Bulmer, a Victorian grower and chair of industry body AusVeg, said he had recently toured farms in Queensland.

“There was nothing out there in the fields,” Bulmer said.

Intermittent rains have made it harder to replant fresh crops as well, he said. That could result in a “yo-yo” effect where supply comes and goes over coming months.

Consumers have also been hit with exorbitant prices for the humble ingredient in the grocery aisles. Shoppers are venting on social media about paying around $12 for a head of iceberg lettuce at independent stores, as well as steeper prices for other produce, with costs upward of $25 for a watermelon.

Woolworths and Coles are still both advertising $5.50 per head of iceberg lettuce, but it is unavailable in most Woolworths stores around inner Sydney and Melbourne, according to its website. A Coles spokesman would not comment specifically on lettuce supplies but said the company was supporting its growers in flood-affected areas.

From lettuce to poultry, 2022 has seen a glut of food supply hiccups. KFC had to cut menu items in January amid shortages of chicken. Subway’s spokesman Rhys Reynolds confirmed that the sandwich chain was experiencing a fresh lettuce shortage. “We expect this to be a short-term inconvenience for our guests,” Reynolds said.

A Subway store informs patrons that it has no lettuce. 

In its last update on fresh produce sent on May 22, Woolworths also flagged reduced supply and quantity of several varieties of tomatoes as well as zucchini, broccoli, beans and broccolini among other types of produce.

“We’re still seeing challenges with lettuce and berry supply so while the new crops have been planted, it will take a few weeks for stocks to return to more stable levels,” said Paul Turner, Woolworths’ general manager of fruit and vegetables.

While elevated prices, which have seen some growers receive $80 to $100 per scarce box of lettuce rather than a typical $14 to $16, are largely the result of climate events, Australia is still grappling with pandemic-related supply chain disruptions and persistent labour shortages, as well as the spikes in fertiliser and fuel prices triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“In normal times fruit and vegetable prices tend to recover relatively quickly and return to normal as production in other areas becomes available to fill supply gaps,” the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) said in its quarterly outlook on Tuesday. “However, in 2022–23 almost all aspects of the supply chain are facing inflationary pressures.”

That aligns with global trends, with a United Nations’ gauge of global food prices at near record-highs.

A McDonald’s spokeswoman said its outlets were still serving the “full menu”. A representative of KFC has been contacted for comment.

With Bloomberg

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