Skift Take
Fast food restaurants aren't necessarily built on a pyramid of french fries, but the quintessential drive-thru item can cause a headache for chain restaurants that rely on potatoes to a substantial portion of business.
— Kristen Hawley
Slinging french fries is getting expensive.
Jack in the Box Inc. is paying more for potatoes in 2018, executives said on a conference call Thursday after the company reported disappointing quarterly sales. The comments indicate that others in the fast-food industry, such as McDonald’s Corp. and Burger King, may be seeing higher prices for one of their signature items, too.
“One of the biggest inflationary items has been potatoes for the entire year — and that continues for most of our competitors, as well as of ourselves,” the company said.
Retail potato prices were 4.3 percent higher in April than they were a year ago at about 73 cents a pound, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. At Jack in the Box, total commodity inflation was 3.6 percent in its most recent quarter.
Jack in the Box shares fell as much as 8.5 percent to $83.57 in New York, the biggest intraday drop in more than a year.
This article was written by Leslie Patton from Bloomberg and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to [email protected].
