FOODSERVICE The flock THICKENS More foodservice operators have joined the 'chicken sandwich war' BY E R I C A S H A FFE R | e s h a f f e r @ s o s l a n d.c o m T 50 MEAT+ POULTRY | 04.21 | www.meatpoultry.com said in its " Quick Service Restaurants: Including Impact of COVID-19 " report from April 2020. " Younger generations are driving the growth of chicken across the menu, including on breakfast menus. Chicken - even fried/breaded chicken - on breakfast sandwiches is likely seen as a better-for-you and more sustainable alternative to more commonly found sausage and bacon breakfast sandwich ingredients. " WINNER, WINNER Chicken sandwiches continue to perform well for foodservice operators. Popeyes, one of the original combatants, generates an average of more than $1.8 million in sales per restaurant Church's Chicken; McDonald's Corp. Church's Chicken saw " blockbuster success " with its Chicken Sandwich. he chicken sandwich war started as a tit-for-tat competition between Popeyes and Church's Chicken. Competitors saw Church's and Popeyes reap the benefits of their Chicken Sandwich War and decided to get in on the action. By the time quick-service heavyweight McDonald's Corp. entered the fray, the battlefield was considerably crowded much to the delight of chicken-loving consumers. " Fried chicken sandwiches have mass appeal across generations, with about half of Gen Xers and older expressing interest in fried chicken sandwiches at QSRs, although interest is still slightly higher among younger generations, " market research firm Mintelhttp://www.meatpoultry.com