KFC Australia’s Commitment to Sustainable Building

KFC Australia has adopted a forward-thinking and progressive approach to rolling out its sustainable building program across their company-owned and franchise development network.  Their ambition is to design and build all new, company owned, restaurants to be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certifiable, and to reduce energy consumption by 15%.  LEED is a voluntary, consensus-based, market-driven program that provides global third-party verification of green buildings.

In 2013, the first step on this journey was taken by opening the first LEED certified quick service restaurant in the country.  Located in East Maitland, New South Wales, it featured improved efficiency systems that achieved energy savings of 16% and water savings of 35% below baseline rates.  Also helping to live up to KFC’s commitment to the environment, recycling has been an important part of the project from the beginning as 93% of demolition and construction waste was recycled.  Now that we are operating the restaurant, 100 percent of operational waste is sent to a nearby recycling facility.

Using the lessons from East Maitland, KFC Australia partnered with the Yum! Global Sustainability and KFC Corporate Development teams to develop ‘Blueline’.  Blueline is our green building standard designed to be a roadmap to LEED certification for both company and franchise construction.

In February 2015, the brand opened a second LEED certifiable restaurant at Lidcombe, New South Wales.  The Lidcombe store was the first store to be both LEED certified and certified under KFC’s Blueline program.

Now, initiatives and standards developed for KFC’s sustainable LEED stores have been incorporated into store designs as standard, meaning the franchisee network can access and develop sustainable stores using a standard store design.  Our franchisee partners are now joining company stores in leading the way with two new franchise restaurants recently receiving Blueline certification and many more under way.

Through the Blueline program, KFC Australia has continued to build on its commitment to reducing energy consumption.  In doing so, it is becoming a global Yum! leader in this area through the implementation of industry-leading initiatives across its company-owned and franchised restaurants.  While the KFC Australia business has achieved impressive results to date, the company continues to explore new opportunities to improve efficiency on the road to a more sustainable future.