Fact Check

KFC Extra Crispy Sunscreen

Many consumers were confused by KFC's Extra Crispy Sunscreen promotion, but it was (briefly) a real product.

Published Aug. 23, 2016

Claim:
A KFC promotion offered Extra Crispy Sunscreen to consumers.

On 22 August 2016, the international fried chicken restaurant chain KFC issued an interesting (and puzzling announcement — they were offering a chicken-scented sunscreen product to their customers:

Although this announcement appearing on the chain's official social social media accounts, many consumers had a hard time believing that the sunscreen promotion was on the level

Kevin Hochman, chief marketing officer for KFC U.S., confirmed in a press release that KFC Extra Crispy Sunscreen is a real product:

"While I'd love to tell you our customers have been asking for this, they haven't. In fact, I'm pretty confident nobody ever asked for this. It's just some crazy idea we dreamed up.

[...]

"Our chicken is hand breaded and freshly prepared in our kitchens all day every day, which is why you can smell our Kentucky Fried Chicken outside of our restaurants. Our Extra Crispy Sunscreen is a fun way to leverage that delicious aroma and let our fans live the Extra Crispy lifestyle for themselves."

Although KFC Extra Crispy Sunscreen is (somewhat) real, you likely won't be able to get any for yourself — at least not without paying a hefty price. The restaurant chain produced only 3,000 bottles of this chicken-scented sunscreen, all of which were claimed within a few hours of the announcement.

KFC Extra Crispy Sunscreen provided protection from the sun (it was SPF 30) and smelled like fried chicken. However, according to the labeling it still tasted like sunscreen:

KFC® Extra Crispy™ Sunscreen is an actual product. KFC® Extra Crispy™ Sunscreen is not a food product. NOT a food product. Do not eat this product. Even though this product smells delicious, it is not delicious. The only skin that should be extra crispy this summer is on your fried chicken.

Dan Evon is a former writer for Snopes.

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