Restaurants react to fake taste inspectors and the free-food scam
‘We wanted to tell the story of the lengths our fans will go to for the taste of KFC’
The recent high-profile television marketing campaign by KFC portraying a fake food inspector visiting outlets around the country, scoring free meals, has featured prominently in the news recently, placing the focus on food scams and misrepresentation in the industry.
A consumer complaint against the advert was partially upheld by the Advertising Regulatory Board that found the commercial was not racist or discriminatory but misleading in a minor claim that it was “based on a true story”, instead of “based on a fake news story” or rumour.
Even the board noted the advert showed the fake taste inspector as “the hero, portrayed as clever and quick and lucky to get away.
“The music is upbeat, and the overall tone of the commercial is feel-good. The viewer sides with the character, and celebrates his clever tricks to make sure that he gets his KFC.”
Grant Macpherson, chief marketing officer for KFC Africa, told TimesLIVE Premium: “Overall, the campaign has been incredibly well-received and loved by countless South Africans across the country ... we wanted to tell the story of the lengths our fans will go to for the taste of KFC. This story has been brought to life by some incredibly talented creatives and performance artists who worked tirelessly to bring the campaign together.”
He said standards — or “our taste guarantee”— happened because all chicken goes through 34 checks from farm to outlet to ensure all quality and safety standards are met. On top of this, announced and unannounced evaluations were carried out countrywide by a third-party restaurant operational compliance check audit team that visits the chain’s restaurants. The possibility of a fake quality inspector getting away with a scam was “entertaining” but “highly unlikely”, as “our records show that any events involving a fake food inspector have never taken place”.
While the campaign has attracted much amusement, restaurateurs agree it is not so easy for scammers to get themselves free food, much less get away with the ploy.
Wendy Alberts, CEO of the Restaurant Association of SA, said: “The industry is well aware of things like this. These are trying times, and we’re still working hard on getting people back to work after the Covid knock, but there are also people out there trying to leverage opportunities and try their luck.”
She said restaurants were generally alert to scams, and were therefore diligent in checking credentials of visitors claiming to be someone other than a customer. “Restaurants get lots of unannounced visits
— you have health inspectors checking kitchens, the police, liquor authorities checking licences. New people all the time. We tell our members that if there is any doubt they can phone the association and we will advise them and check things out,” Alberts said.
“You also get mystery patrons, much like secret shoppers in supermarkets, but they pay their way. The scams we see are more in the form of things like credit card fraud. But those con artists go from restaurant to restaurant, and we communicate with each other in the industry and alert our members fast.”
Her sentiments were echoed by Grace Harding, CEO of the Ocean Basket franchise.
“We obsess with food quality from a safety and hygiene view, and taste and experience. I have never heard of quality inspectors. There are health officials, and though I am not sure how often they visit restaurants and what they do when they visit, we always comply. Fake inspectors sound like nonsense,” Harding said.
Hanlee Louw, entertainer and owner of Bosco Ristorante Italiano in Joburg’s Sunninghill, said she too had never encountered a fake inspector but had instead been conned into issuing a refund unnecessarily.