- KFC has said it ‘remains committed’ to ensuring greater animal welfare standards across its supply chain after rowing back on plans to stop buying fast-growing chicken breeds by 2026. The fried chicken giant has reneged on its Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) target to switch to slower-growing breeds, saying the UK poultry industry is ‘not yet in an operational or commercial position’ to deliver such an ambition. Speaking at the Egg & Poultry Industry Conference last week, Ruth Edge, KFC UK&I head of sustainability, said the company had now concluded the highly publicised switch was not achievable in the planned timescale.
- Ollie Dabbous will step down from his role as chef patron at Michelin-starred Mayfair restaurant Hide early next year. Dabbous – who launched the high-profile Piccadilly venue for owners Yevgeny Chichvarkin and Tatiana Fokina in 2018 – will hand the reins to current group executive chef Josh Angus, who will become chef director. Dabbous says that he plans to enjoy some time with his family and friends before focusing on his next adventure.
- Loungers is to be acquired by US-based investment firm Fortress in a deal that values the all-day café and restaurant group at approximately £338.3m. Under the terms of the acquisition, each Loungers shareholder will be entitled to receive 310p in cash for each share, with an alternative option to participate in an unlisted share alternative in respect of some or all their Loungers shares. The cash offer represents a premium of approximately 30.3% to the closing price of 238p per Loungers share on 27 November 2024. Two of Loungers’s biggest shareholders have subsequently said they will vote against the acquisition, although others have signalled they will back the deal.
- Gregg Wallace is to step away from his role on MasterChef while complaints made to the BBC regarding historical allegations of misconduct are investigated. A statement from the TV show’s production company, Banijay UK, to the PA news agency said that Wallace, who has presented and been a judge on MasterChef UK alongside Australian chef John Torode since 2005, is ‘committed to fully cooperating throughout the process’. BBC News reports that it sent a letter to Wallace’s representatives on Tuesday (26 November) setting out allegations of inappropriate sexual comments by 13 people who worked with him across a range of shows over a 17-year period. Broadcaster Kirsty Wark, who was a Celebrity MasterChef contestant in 2011, said he told ‘sexualised’ jokes during filming. Wallace’s lawyers say it is entirely false that he engages in behaviour of a sexually harassing nature.
- Celebrity chef and restaurateur Aldo Zilli is to return to London after 20 years to open a restaurant in the crypt of St George’s Church in Mayfair next month. Called Undercroft, it will see Zilli join forces with music publisher Martin Priestnall and Michael Kill ‘to bring together the best in art, design, music and food’. The restaurant was initially to be Birmingham chef Brad Carter’s debut London restaurant, but he split from the project in September this year.
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