the buzz log

Oh, it's on now! El Pollo Loco (aka "the Crazy Chicken" to all you non-Spanish speakers) has called out its bitter rival Kentucky Fried Chicken over KFC's use of beef in its grilled chicken. Say what?

EPL says that KFC is using "beef powder" and "rendered beef fat" in its highly touted grilled chicken sandwich. The maniacs at the Crazy Chicken have even launched a website, BeefyChicken.com, that mocks KFC's reliance on moo meat. Oh, and commercials, too.

A blog from the Consumerist quotes EPL head honcho Steve Carley as saying, "The use of beef ingredients in grilled chicken just seems wrong to me, and we believe most consumers would agree." You can almost smell the righteous indignation.

KFC has responded, but not with a denial. Rick Maynard, a spokesperson for the Colonel's restaurant, acknowledged that his employer uses beef in its grilled chicken. He told the Los Angeles Times that "small amounts of beef flavors are commonly used in seasonings for many food products, for both restaurant and retail use." Additionally, according to KFC, the beefy flavors "account for only 0.2% of the total seasoning."

Searchers are grilling queries on "beefy chicken" and blogs throughout the Buzz are sounding off. The Big Money reports that El Pollo Loco learned of KFC's use of beef from one of its Twitter followers. You can see the meaty evidence yourself on KFC's official website. Scroll down to page 14 of the KFC Ingredient Statement for, ahem, "the beef."

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