Chick-fil-A’s Chick-fil-A lemon squeezer cuts more than 10,000 hours a day: report
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Atlanta, Georgia-based Chick-fil-A Inc. cuts nearly 10,000 hours of labor a day at its lemon-squeezing facilities, which produces the juice used in one of the most popular drinks at fast-food outlets, according to the report. reports.
Bloomberg reported that the company, which has coined the slogan “Eat more chicken,” has a plant north of Los Angeles with machines that take up more space than a typical Costco Wholesale.
The same machines that occupy this space are tasked with squeezing up to 1.6 million pounds of lemons before packing the juice and shipping it to Chick-fil-A locations across the country. Once in the restaurant, employees add sugar and water to create a long-lasting company logo.
Before robots were introduced into the system, restaurant workers were responsible for squeezing lemons, which sometimes resulted in injured fingers.
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Outdoor patio in Shoreview, Minn., Chick-fil-A, an American fast food restaurant specializing in chicken sandwiches. (Michael Siluk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images/Getty Images)
By taking work out of workers’ hands and automating it, the company hopes to make working in its facilities more attractive.
“You start doing the math, and you’re not going to have enough team members,” Mike Hazelton, Chick-fil-A’s vice president of procurement and operations, told Bloomberg.
This lemon squeezer reportedly has 120 employees who maintain the equipment and ensure that the juice produced meets quality standards.
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Ripe lemons hang from a lemon tree in front of a house on March 29, 2023, in Portugal. (Viola Lopes/photo alliance via Getty Images/Getty Images)
When the trucks arrive, an employee signs off before the machines begin to process them from fruit to juice.
Even the oil from the leaves is extracted during the process before being sent to the cosmetic and perfume industries, which brings a new income chain for Chick-fil-A.
Bloomberg reported that almost all of the lemons are used in processing on site, resulting in 40% more efficiency than when workers pressed the lemons.
Chick-fil-A did not immediately respond to FOX Business’ request for more information about the process and what it means for the business.
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A Chick-fil-A restaurant in Indianapolis in May 2019. (iStock / Stock)
Chick-fil-A isn’t the only company looking for ways to use technology to automate things.
Last year, Yum! Brands, which owns KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and The Habit Burger Grill restaurants, has begun embracing “AI-powered” fast food technology and systems, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
The company has been increasing investments in technology and automation, with about 45%, or $30 billion, of digital sales, almost double what it was in 2019, Joe Park, Yum’s chief digital and technology manager, told newspaper. That’s nearly double the 2019 rate.
The move came as states like California raised the minimum wage. In California, most fast-food workers dropped to at least $20 an hour when the new minimum wage law went into effect in April.
As a result, many restaurant operators are beginning to turn to AI to cut costs and increase sales, the Journal reported.
For fast food giants like Yum, the use of AI is aimed at more than just improving the customer experience.
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Yum! has a mobile app for restaurant managers called SuperApp, which the Wall Street Journal reported is testing productive AI, allowing team members to ask operational questions like how to set the oven temperature. Park told the Journal that the app, which is used by more than 8,700 Pizza Hut and KFC locations, can also be used to purchase ingredients and schedule employee shifts. And a new augmented reality feature can help teach employees how to create new menu items.
Fast food chains have also been increasing investments in technology such as digital ordering and other innovations since the COVID-19 pandemic.
While some are concerned AI may take over the need for human workers, Yum! a spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal “its employees will continue to play an important role.”
Fox News Digital’s Pilar Arias contributed to this report.
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