KFC’s vegan fried chicken sells out in under 5 hours

August has a history of making everyone go a little crazy. Maybe it’s the knowledge that summer is coming to an end, or maybe it’s that hot weather makes us all do things we’d rather weren’t repeated in public, but weird things always seem to happen before September gets under way. This year, the population have coalesced their crazy around a special type of KFC. The results have been explosive.

According to multiple media reports, the test site for The Colonel’s new range of vegan fried chicken reportedly sold out in less than five hours, leaving queues around the block and hundreds of hungry fans empty handed. The restaurant, located in Atlanta, Georgia, allegedly ran out of plant-based boneless wings and nuggets before lunch time, proving that you don’t necessarily need a bird to make fried chicken popular. 

Eye witnesses claim that lines were “wrapped around the restaurant” from the moment it opened its doors at 8:00AM, with one report stating that there was a “double-loop” of cars trying to access the drive-thru windows. Several clips uploaded to social media show the carnage as cars and customers press towards the front of the queue. 

The plant-based options themselves come courtesy of alternative animal product specialists “Beyond Meat”. In addition to creating the incredibly popular faux fried chicken, Beyond have a range of items designed to cater to the fast food market, including burgers and sausages. After the success of the Georgia trial, many will start to wonder whether vegan alternatives are the way to go across the industry. 

Despite the two dishes’ wild popularity, there has been no official word on whether customers can expect a wider roll-out. The Sun report that it will “come down to customer feedback” to determine whether the powers that be believe Beyond Fried chicken warrants a nationwide release. Given the furious determination on display yesterday, it’s hard to imagine the feedback being anything other than glowing.