FAST food chain KFC's stores remain closed across Dorset today, despite a limited wave of re-openings nationally.

The bulk of the fried chicken giant's 900 branches failed to open on Saturday due to a shortage of chicken, which the chain attributed to "teething problems" with a new distributor.

Today, the firm has tweeted that "some chickens have now crossed the road, the rest are waiting at the pelican crossing", accompanied by a list of some 250 open stores, none in Dorset.

No date has been offered for when the other stores may open.

"We've brought a new delivery partner onboard, but they've had a couple of teething problems - getting fresh chicken out to 900 restaurants across the country is pretty complex!" KFC said in a statement.

"We won't compromise on quality, so no deliveries has meant some of our restaurants are closed and others are operating a limited menu, or shortened hours," the company added.

"We know that this might have inconvenienced some of you over the last few days, and disappointed you when you wanted your fried chicken fix - we're really sorry about that."

KFC was previously a client of Bidvest Logistics but has since swapped contract to enlist DHL for food deliveries.

New distributor DHL said: "Due to operational issues a number of deliveries in recent days have been incomplete or delayed.
"We are working with KFC and our partners to rectify the situation as a priority and apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused."

DHL announced in November that it had been appointed alongside QSL to manage the supply and distribution of food products and packaging for more than 850 KFC restaurants throughout the UK.

It said DHL would manage the physical warehouse and distribution service, with KFC adding it had specifically chosen the pair for their reputation of "innovation in logistics" across other industries.

Signs pinned to the doors of the closed restaurants read: “Sorry we’re closed. We deliver our chicken fresh into our restaurants, but we’ve had a few hiccups with the delivery today.

“We wouldn’t want to open without offering our full menu, but we’ll be back at the fryers as soon as we can.

“Apologies for any inconvenience.”

The US giant’s regional Twitter feed posted “The Colonel is working on it” on Saturday.

“Shout out to our restaurant teams who are working flat out to get us back up and running again," it said.

Fans of the chain have reacted with a mixture of frustration and amusement on social media.

Tweeting the firm, Andrew Penford @PenfoldOfficial said: "I think the Colonel should be demoted to Sergeant."

And Kevin B @rushman1uk said: "Some serious questions need to be asked from your new delivery service. This is no way to run a business!"