The Major Supplier Behind KFC's Famous Finger Licking Good Chicken

Since 1952, Kentucky Fried Chicken has served finger-licking good meals to its adoring fans. Throughout Colonel Sanders' wild history, KFC's founder created a secret recipe of 11 herbs and spices and its method to pressure-cook chicken to crispy perfection. Certainly, this results in delicious chicken for its patrons — but who supplies the fast food giant's poultry product? Well, like competitors such as McDonald's and Wendy's, the answer is a combined effort from multiple suppliers. For KFC, its majority chicken suppliers are two mega-brands: Tyson Foods Inc. and Pilgrim's Pride.

Like many establishments, KFC withholds much of its supplier information from the public. While it isn't clear when Tyson or Pilgrim's Pride started supplying chicken to KFC, both are assumed to be long-standing partnerships. As one of the top chicken and meat suppliers in the U.S., Tyson provides products not only to KFC but also to other fast food chains, including Taco Bell and McDonald's. Tyson also functions as the parent company of other well-known brands, such as Jimmy Dean, Ball Park, and Sara Lee. Turning the gaze to Pilgrim's Pride, it's also a provider for Burger King, Chick-fil-A, Sam's Club, Costco, and Publix.

Without dismissing the quality of Tyson and Pilgrim's Pride products, it should be noted that the success of suppliers like these doesn't always come cleanly. While Pilgrim's Pride commits to sustainable operations, it faced accusations of price fixing for its chicken in 2016, to which it entered a plea deal in 2020 and agreed to settle the charges in 2023. Similarly, Tyson is committed to sustainable operations and making animal welfare a priority; it also faces a lawsuit of greenwashing by advocacy organization Environmental Working Group. The lawsuit accuses Tyson of misleading environmentally conscious consumers by claiming to have net-zero emissions by 2050 without any concrete plans to achieve it. Tyson motioned to have the case dismissed in November 2024, which was denied in February 2025.

It can be agreed that it's important to know where your food comes from and the brands behind it. While the process of doing so might reveal some unpleasant facts about KFC and other popular fast food chicken chains, it shouldn't stop you from enjoying the foods you like. KFC offers some of our favorite fast food chicken tenders in the industry, and has become a Christmas tradition in Japan thanks to a highly successful marketing campaign that launched in 1974. Elite fans can even enjoy one of KFC's Famous Bowls while reading a limited run comic adventure from DC featuring Green Lantern and The Flash in a team-up with Colonel Sanders. In the issue, the heroes do battle with Colonel Sunder, an evil multiversal doppleganger from Earth-3 whose nefarious goal is to give the Colonel a bad name.