Kentucky Fried Chicken Japan says it may scale back its menu after a system failure at one of its logistics contractors disrupted food deliveries to stores across the country.
The fast-food giant says product shortages, reduced menus and changes to opening hours are possible after unauthorized access to Nichirei¡¯s systems impacted operations at its distribution unit. KFC¡¯s mobile orders and delivery services have also been temporarily suspended.
¡°The situation is fluid,¡± a KFC spokesperson said over the phone. ¡°The status of food ingredient deliveries varies from store to store so we aren¡¯t able to grasp a specific number of outlets or products that are affected at this stage.¡±
The incident adds to a growing list of cybersecurity and IT issues disrupting Japanese businesses. Beverage maker Asahi Group Holdings and confectionery company Ezaki Glico are among other firms hit recently, with attacks affecting supply chains, production and customer services.
Nichirei said on Monday that it had detected unauthorized access to its systems, disrupting operations at Nichirei Logistics Group and impacting frozen food shipments. The company is assessing impact on earnings, recovery timeline and other details, according to a spokesperson, adding that the situation is ongoing.
The impact is spreading throughout Japan¡¯s food industry. Restaurant operator Colowide says it¡¯s experiencing delays in shipments, while retailer Aeon is assessing effects of the outage on its operations, and says some items are out of stock.
Nichirei shares fell as much as 6.5% on Wednesday, the most on an intraday basis since August 2025.
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