KFC to invest $2 billion in UK and Ireland over five years

LONDON (Reuters) -Yum Brands' KFC plans to invest 1.49 billion pounds ($2.0 billion) in Britain and Ireland over the next five years, creating over 7,000 jobs within its business and across its supply chain, it said on Tuesday.

The fried chicken fast food chain, which currently operates over 1,000 outlets across the UK and Ireland, employing 30,000, said it planned to open a further 500 outlets over the next decade.

Of the 1.49 billion pounds, 466 million pounds will go towards opening the new outlets and upgrading 200 existing sites, while 583 million pounds will be invested in new jobs, the company said.

KFC said the UK's appetite for fried chicken was growing, with the market estimated to be worth 3.1 billion pounds.

"The market is only expected to grow further, with consumer demand for fried chicken outstripping other quick service restaurant categories," it added.

($1 = 0.7390 pounds)

(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Paul Sandle and Susan Fenton)