Yum! KFC notches a Kentucky Fried record

KFC marked the 70th anniversary of founder Colonel Harland Sanders' proprietary secret "Original Recipe" of 11 herbs and spices by attempting to set a new world record for largest single serving of fried chicken on Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2010 at Fourth Street Live! in Louisville, Ky. A KFC spokesman said more than 2,400 lbs. of chicken were served, shattering the as-yet uncertified previous record of 1,654 lbs. set by an Indiana festival in July. (Apex MediaWire Photo by Billy Suratt) (US NEWSPAPERS ONLY - ALL OTHER LICENSORS CONTACT ZUMAPRESS.COM)
KFC marked the 70th anniversary of founder Colonel Harland Sanders' proprietary secret "Original Recipe" of 11 herbs and spices by attempting to set a new world record for largest single serving of fried chicken on Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2010 at Fourth Street Live! in Louisville, Ky. A KFC spokesman said more than 2,400 lbs. of chicken were served, shattering the as-yet uncertified previous record of 1,654 lbs. set by an Indiana festival in July. (Apex MediaWire Photo by Billy Suratt) (US NEWSPAPERS ONLY - ALL OTHER LICENSORS CONTACT ZUMAPRESS.COM)

KFC marked the 70th anniversary of founder Kentucky Colonel Harland Sanders’ proprietary secret “Original Recipe” of 11 herbs and spices by attempting to set a new world record for largest single serving of fried chicken on Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2010 at Fourth Street Live! in Louisville, Ky. A KFC spokesman said more than 2,400 pounds of chicken were served, shattering the as-yet uncertified previous record of 1,654 pounds set by an Indiana festival in July. (Photo by Billy Suratt)

Publicity stunt events cooked up by companies’ PR departments usually don’t excite me, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see a 7-foot-tall bucket of chicken Tuesday in Louisville.

KFC, a division of Louisville-based Yum! Brands, marked the 70th anniversary of founder Colonel Harland Sanders’ finger-lickin’ good secret original recipe of 11 herbs and spices by trying to reclaim the Guinness World Record for largest single serving of fried chicken.

The record was formerly held by a KFC in Kuwait, but it was unofficially broken July 2 at Canoefest in Brookville, Ind., with 1,654 lbs. served up in — wait for it — a canoe.

KFC set their sights on an even ton, but spokesman Ryan Eichler said they ended up with over 2,400 lbs. of fried goodness. I’d hoped for an exact piece count and more accurate tonnage information, but it wasn’t readily available at the time.

I got there late due to an aircraft carrier-sized farm implement almost completely blocking both lanes of Kentucky Highway 80 for the first half hour of my journey, but it looked like there wasn’t exactly a large media throng to compete with. AP just ran with a handout shot by Louisville-based freelancer Brian Bohannon and The Courier-Journal doesn’t seem to have even run anything.

I started to not even go, but I kept thinking “Y’know, a 7-foot bucket of chicken on the 70th anniversary of The Colonel’s secret recipe is just bizarre enough that it might be interesting.” And it was!

I'm a Mid-South photojournalist, Kentucky writer and digital media consultant (or eNinja™). Circle me on Google Plus at Plus.BillySuratt.com, follow me on Twitter at @surattb and Instagram me at @BillySuratt. Got a news tip or suggestion about some journalism that needs committed? Email blog@billysuratt.com (discretion is always guaranteed).

One thought on “Yum! KFC notches a Kentucky Fried record

  1. Here’s hoping a lot of people enjoyed licking their fingers after consuming 2400 lbs of KFC goodness.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *