?Texas Chicken plans to enter the lucrative Indian QSR Market

Korean crispy chicken brand Cravy Chicken is set to make its entry into the Indian hospitality and retail space at the Franchise India Expo 2024. The launch event, scheduled for November 29-30 at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai, marks the brand’s introduction to Indian consumers, bringing its globally recognized flavors to the country.

With a presence of over 100 stores worldwide, Cravy Chicken is known for its innovative menu that blends authentic Korean and international flavors. Signature dishes such as Seoul Sweet and Spicy chicken, New York Supreme, and Texas Chi-beque have made the brand a popular choice globally. Cravy’s advanced R&D techniques, including Air-Shower technology for tender and juicy chicken, ensure consistency in quality and flavor.

FranGlobal, holding the master franchise rights for Cravy Chicken in India, spearheads the brand’s expansion into the Indian market. Known for managing international franchise operations, FranGlobal aims to replicate Cravy Chicken’s success in this new territory.

Justin Hyunjoon Yang, CEO of Cravy said, "Cravy Chicken’s launch in India represents our commitment to sharing authentic Korean cuisine with global food lovers. We are confident that our unique flavors and world-class preparation techniques will delight Indian consumers who are eager for new and exciting culinary experiences."

Gaurav Marya, Chairman of FranGlobal said, "We are thrilled to bring Cravy Chicken to the Indian market, a country with a deep appreciation for diverse and flavorful cuisines. Our goal is to replicate the success of Cravy in Korea by offering a product that resonates with Indian consumers while staying true to the brand's essence."

The Franchise India Expo 2024, renowned as the world’s largest platform for franchise and retail opportunities, provides an ideal stage for Cravy Chicken’s debut. Visitors will get a firsthand experience of the flavors that have earned the brand its international acclaim.

Cravy Chicken’s launch highlights the growing demand for Korean cuisine in India, influenced by global culinary trends and the evolving preferences of Indian diners. With a focus on hygiene, innovative cooking techniques, and recipes adapted to local tastes, the brand aims to establish itself as a key player in India’s fast-growing food and beverage sector.

For the first time in its history, Popeyes has added Boneless Wings as a permanent menu item, available across the United States. The new offering features six distinct flavors: Classic, Honey Lemon Pepper, Signature Hot, Honey BBQ, Sweet 'N Spicy, and Roasted Garlic Parmesan. These Boneless Wings are crafted from tender all-white meat chicken breast, hand-battered, breaded, and fried for a crispy finish. Whether customers prefer a mild or spicy kick, there's a flavor for every palate.

Popeyes noticed the ongoing debate on social media about boneless wings, with many food enthusiasts, influencers, athletes, and comedians weighing in. In response, Popeyes is joining the conversation, asserting that their Boneless Wings will turn skeptics into believers. To support this claim, Popeyes has partnered with actor and comedian Jimmy O. Yang, who previously expressed his disdain for boneless wings. After sampling Popeyes' version, Yang has had a change of heart and now endorses them.

Jimmy O. Yang commented, "Okay, you got me. I wasn't acting at all. I never thought I'd say this, but I'm officially a boneless believer. Popeyes has made a boneless wing so good that I'm eating my words. I used to be a hater — honestly, I've always been a hater — but after trying these, holy #$!@, they're incredible. If these wings can convert me, they can convert anyone."

Jeff Klein, President of Popeyes North America added, "Our new Boneless Wings are a game changer. Our culinary team brought the best flavors from our existing Wing platform to this new Boneless offering to give our guests the best of both worlds. We're so confident everyone will love them that we're giving away free 6 piece Boneless Wings with any $10 purchase as both a thank you to loyal believers and a challenge for those ready to be converted."

To promote the new Boneless Wings, Popeyes is offering a free 6-piece Boneless Wings with any $10 purchase made through the Popeyes app or website until July 14th. Popeyes new Boneless Wings are now available at participating U.S. locations. For more details on the campaign and offers, visit popeyes.com.

According to a Reuters report, Butter chicken, a globally renowned Indian dish, is not only delicious but also the center of a legal dispute between two Indian restaurant chains, each asserting ownership claims over its origins.

The legal battle, gaining significant attention in India was initiated by the family associated with Moti Mahal, a renowned Delhi restaurant brand that has hosted notable figures such as late U.S. President Richard Nixon and India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

The lawsuit alleges that the founder of the restaurant, Kundan Lal Gujral, crafted the curry in the 1930s during the initial opening of the restaurant in Peshawar, before later relocating to Delhi.

In a comprehensive 2,752-page legal document, the Moti Mahal family has filed a lawsuit against the rival chain Daryaganj, accusing it of making false claims about inventing both the butter chicken and dal makhani, a well-liked lentil dish rich in butter and cream.

The Gujral family is pursuing $240,000 in compensation, claiming that Daryaganj not only imitated the layout of Moti Mahal's website but also replicated the overall ambiance of its restaurants, alleging infringement on both digital and physical aspects.

You cannot diminish someone's legacy. The dish was created during our grandfather's time in Pakistan," stated Monish Gujral, who serves as the managing director at Moti Mahal.

Daryaganj, a relatively new establishment founded in 2019, rebuts the claims by asserting that their late family member, Kundan Lal Jaggi, collaborated with Gujral to launch the Delhi restaurant in 1947, and it was at that location that the dish was originally created. This, according to Daryaganj, provides them with the legitimacy to stake a claim to the invention of the dish.

Daryaganj provided Reuters with a weathered, handwritten partnership document dated 1949 as evidence supporting its stance.

The controversy has seized the nation's interest, with Indian television channels featuring segments on the dish's history and discussions raging across social media platforms.

Ameet Datta, an intellectual property lawyer at Saikrishna & Associates in India, commented, "It's an unusual and distinctive case. Determining the originator of the first serving of butter chicken is quite challenging. The court will face difficulties and may have to depend on indirect evidence."

Datta emphasized that testimonies from individuals who can establish a connection between the restaurant brand and the dish they consumed many years ago could serve as crucial evidence.

Popeyes is aiming at becoming the top chicken brand in China. The US-based fried chicken chain wants to take on KFC, the no.1 player in the world's most populous market.

The brand has entered into a lease agreement in Shanghai for its first store in China, which is slated to launch next year.

In July, Popeyes informed that is plans to build 1,500 restaurants in China in the coming decade. With this, the company will become the last of Toronto-based Restaurant Brands International Inc's main brands to enter the country.

Jose Cil, CEO of Restaurant Brands International, said, “Popeyes' July plan was just really to put a framework on the short-term potential business. I think we can be the no.1 Chicken brand here in China and all around Asia.”

Also Read: How Healthy And Wealthy Is Chicken Business!

“The sandwich will also be offered in China. RBI's other two main brands had seen rapid growth in China. Burger King has expanded to around 1,100 stores in China from less than 100 in 2012. We think we'll keep growing at a steady pace,” Cil added.

Recently, Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons opened its 28th store in China after launching here in February.

Cil further stated, “We are preparing ourselves to be able to accelerate growth in the coming years.”

A growing chicken market in India

With eating habits changing majorly in the metro cities, the per capita chicken consumption in India has been growing. Poultry meat’s easy availability has also led to the mushrooming of the organised chicken QSR brands in the country.  

Also Read: Smaller Towns Emerge As Favourite For Chicken QSR Brands

In India, the Indian Poultry Industry is one of the fastest growing segments of the agricultural sector today as the production of agricultural crops has been rising at a rate of 1.5 to 2% per annum while the production of eggs and broilers has been rising at a rate of 8 to 10% per annum.

Taking the franchise route for expansion

Like many popular fast food chains, including Domino’s, McDonald’s and Burger King, specialised chicken QSR chains are also expanding their presence through the franchise route in the Indian market. 

The popularity of chicken QSR chains has not only helped their brands grow fast along with understanding the local consumers but has also given many opportunities to prospective franchisees. 

Some of the brands that work on the franchise model include KFC, Five Star Chicken, Mr Fried Chicken, Panro's Crisp Chicken, ChicKing, Hot Chix, W 'N' F, LC Systems and Mad Over Chicken.

JJ Chicken is aiming to foray into the 12 cities in India.

The restaurant serves charcoal-grilled chicken meals that cater to a balanced diet in a quick-service environment.  It is the only QSR of authentic charcoal-grilled chicken that has a unique and irreplaceable taste of the charcoal grilling in its sandwiches.

Chrisosta, Brand Manager, JJ Chicken, Dubai, said, “We have a low capital set up and very fast returns on investment business model. Going forward we are planning to enter 12 cities in India.”

JJ Chicken has a simple and easy way to control operations, working with only one main ingredient (Chicken) makes it easy.

Created in 2010, JJ Chicken is currently operating in 10 shops and 1 food truck with 4 more units opening in 2019 and expanding internationally.

The size of a typical JJ Chicken outlet is between 50 sq meters and 100 sq meters depending on location conditions.

IHOP Restaurants has launched new Buttermilk Crispy Chicken, expanding its all-day menu.

Buttermilk Crispy Chicken is made with all-natural chicken breasts and a signature seasoning blend. Its menu features eight new menu items, ranging from savory to sweet and from breakfast to late-night.

Brad Haley, chief marketing officer at IHOP, said, “Our new Crispy Buttermilk Chicken menu was developed with both quality and taste in mind, featuring all-natural chicken breasts and breast strips that are dipped in our proprietary Buttermilk batter and perfectly seasoned breading before being fried to a crispy, golden brown that’s still juicy on the inside.”

“Chicken and waffles have quickly become an all-day staple across America and IHOP now makes a really great version of them with our delicious new Crispy Buttermilk Chicken and our classic, fresh-made Belgian Waffle. But, since we are, after all, the International House of Pancakes, we just had to offer our own take on it with Crispy Chicken and Pancakes, made with our World Famous, Buttermilk pancakes and offered for the introductory price of just $6.99. Chicken and Waffles won’t know what hit them,” he added.

Haley further stated, “We’ve generated tremendous momentum around our lunch, dinner, overnight and to-go occasions following the internet-breaking launch of our Ultimate Steakburgers and national DoorDash partnership last year, and we expect our new Crispy Chicken menu to take that initiative even farther. However, a lot of people still might not expect IHOP to be a serious player in fried chicken so our lead agency, Droga5, created an entertaining new advertising campaign that depicts IHOP sneaking into the chicken game aboard a Trojan chicken.”

KFC India has launched an exclusive range of KFC Merch. Truly inspired by fried chicken and your love for it, the Merch is designed in collaboration with The Souled Store.

The new range will be available on the quick service restaurant (QSR) chain’s app, website and The Souled Store website.

Moksh Chopra, Chief Marketing Officer of KFC India, said, “If you are ‘crispy’ and you know it, why shy away from flaunting it? Here’s your chance to unabashedly wear your heart, or rather KFC love, on your sleeve. It is designed for those who think chicken, dream chicken. Donning the KFC Merch is the perfect way to bring out the chicken-lover in you.”

The Merch range comes in various categories, from T-shirts to badges, pins, mobile covers and stickers, this is as fresh, crispy and juicy as it gets. KFC will keep widening this range over the next few months.

The food safety department launched a mobile food lab “Chicken 65” which will go to various localities in different cities of Chennai and the outskirts to test the quality of food. The van, equipped with various testing facilities, was flagged off by health minister C Vijayabaskar.

Chicken 65 with too much colour, carbonated drinks that are high on sugar, milk adulterated with water, residents can clear doubts about the quality of their food at their door step now.

Food safety officials said, the department had tied up with various associations working for residents’ welfare, traders and pushcart vendors. “The purpose of the van will be dual: The quality of the food will be tested and food business operators will be educated on how to maintain safe standards,” said a food safety official. The van’s schedule will be published in the department’s website in the beginning of each month.

The officials Said, “If there are blank dates, associations can call or email us,” adding that they had already got requests from around 10 associations, including traders in the wholesale market in Koyambedu. The van will shuttle between Chennai, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur. The department will be adding one more vehicle to its fleet in March.

In addition, the service will help the department keep track on facilities that follow unsafe practices. In Chennai, since 2011, of the 969 food samples lifted, 209 were found to be substandard, and 120 unsafe — those found containing harmful bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances.

Those who want to avail the facility can write to [email protected] or WhatsApp or call 9444042322.

Chicken prices in many parts of the country have started rising and are expected to increase by 25-30 percent amid the controversy over beef consumption, industry body Assocham has said.

It said, "Rising per capita incomes, growth in quick service restaurants are other key reasons for growing demand and consumption of meat in India, it said. Consumption of chicken is likely to go up by 35-40%."

According to the analysis by Assocham's Economic Research Bureau (AERB), "Poultry wholesale price index has also risen over 22% while that of beef and buffalo meat has declined about 3 % between May 2014 and March 2017."

The chicken production has been steadily growing at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10-12 per cent, while its consumption has been clocking a CAGR of 15-18 per cent since the past few years.

An Assocham official said, "The ban and related controversies have come as a blessing in disguise for poultry firms in Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and other key regions."

As part of its analysis, Assocham had conducted a survey of about 100 poultry shops in different states, whereby the majority of the respondents confirmed the demand was picking up despite the onset of summer.

Nando’s, the South Africa based international chain of casual dining restaurants serving Afro Portuguese cuisine hosted National Grillers’ Challenge 2015 at Nando’s restaurant in Cyber hub, Gurgaon.

Grillers’ Challenge is an annual event which is one of the most engaging internal events of Nando’s to motivate and appreciates the grillers.

After a challenging competition between the top grillers from Nando’s New Delhi, Chennai, Punjab and Bangalore, the National Challenge was won by Mahesh Chand from Bangalore.

He will now be going to Vancouver, Canada to represent India in the International Grillers’ Challenge.

“It’s the Grillers who make the chicken that we are so proud of! Grillers’ Challenge is the time to celebrate the Grillers. We wish to make the India National Grillers’ Challenge the most unforgettable experience for our Grillers. So we’ve taken care to ensure that each touch point in their journey of the National Challenge from start to finish is truly memorable!” said, Sumeet Yadav, CEO, Nando’s India. Nando’s Grillers or ‘Nandocas’ battled it out in the Regional Grillers’ Challenge in the first week of July.

The winners were flown to New Delhi for the National Challenge along with the Patraos of their respective restaurants. The competition saw four finalists take to the grill, cooking a whole, fresh chicken to perfection before serving it to a panel of guest judges, including food connoisseur - Osama Jalali; eminent F&B writer and blogger - Rupali Dean; celebrated Chef - Shailendra; MD of MJ Logistics (Logistics Partner of Nando’s) - Anil Arora and Sr. Director, Deloitte, Rahul Vig and a huge Nando’s lover.

The judges were asked to rate the chicken on the basis of browning of skin, grill marks, cutting of the chicken, basting, tenderness, juiciness and overall brand fitness. Nandocas will also be treated to a fantastic array of events while in Vancouver including a special gala dinner and a fun-filled tour of the cultural city.