At the moment, KFC’s Kenyan clients have to choose from the swap options to their French fries because the fast-food giant has suffered a shortage of potatoes at its outlets in Kenya, following delays in delivery from its overseas suppliers.

The hitch in the global supply of potatoes has to do with postponements in shipping lines due to the COVID-19 situation, with ships being delayed for more than a month.

KFC, which operates locally through franchisee Kuku Foods East Africa, does not source potatoes locally due to global quality standards. Through its official voices, the company mentioned that it cannot bypass the approval procedures to allow local farmers to fill in the gap.

The fast-food giant said that during the period when French fries will not be available in its outlets in Kenya, customers would be offered swap options with items such as chicken, buns, soda, coleslaw, and ugali for combo meals.

This comes at a time potato has become the second most important food crop after maize, grown by 800,000 small-scale farmers and generating employment for an estimated 2,5m people along the value chain. It is estimated to contribute more than USD 441,6m to the Kenyan economy.