KFC suspends "irresponsible" advertising amid coronavirus pandemic

Fast food giant KFC has been forced to pull an entire ad campaign after it was called "irresponsible" in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

The advertisements were centred around the slogan "finger lickin' good", going against everything public health organisations have been saying about preventing the spread of coronavirus.

Health officials around the world are constantly stressing the importance of hand-washing to combat COVID-19. Since the KFC ads launched two weeks ago, 163 separate people have complained to the UK's Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). Complaints called the ad "irresponsible" and claimed it was encouraging behaviours that would spread coronavirus.

In a statement, KFC confirmed it has temporarily paused the rollout of the advertisements.

"It doesn't feel like the right time to be airing this campaign, so we've decided to pause it for now – but we're really proud of it and look forward to bringing it back at a later date," a spokesperson for the brand told The Drum.

KFC will not be penalised for the campaign, as it had already decided to withdraw the advertisements before ASA informed the company of the complaints.

This week COVID-19 has been declared a "pandemic" by the World Health Organisation. More than 126,000 people globally have been infected by the virus, in over 120 countries.