EDITORIAL: Finger licking good promo

If someone asked you what the biggest news story of the first half of this week was, what would you say?
The fallout from the death of Osama bin Laden? The upcoming Budget? The ongoing earthquakes in Canterbury?
If news and social media websites are any sort of gauge, it's actually the unveiling of a new chicken burger.
Yes, really.
The powerbrokers at KFC must be rubbing their hands together with glee at the amount of publicity and hype their new Double Down burger has received.
They probably hardly even had to dip into the full reservoir of their advertising and marketing budget, such is the clamour that has arisen around the newest entry on this country's fast-food scene.
For the uninitiated, the Double Down is made up of two strips of bacon, cheese, and the "Colonel's special sauce", encased in two chicken fillets. That's right, no bread buns.
The burger has horrified nutritionists, concerned at the Double Down's 604 calories and 34.4g of total fat, 11.9g of which is saturated fat.
KFC has been quick to describe the Double Down as an "occasional meal", and has acknowledged the burger is not for everyone.
And yet, the company would have to be thrilled at the column inches the Double Down has received in New Zealand newspapers, as well as the photographs and burger-related comments that have flooded social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.
The interest in the Double Down represents a move away from a public mood which, in the past decade or so, has increasingly swung in favour of healthy-eating options. Practically all this country's major fast-food chains, including KFC, have adjusted their menu offerings to reflect these changed eating habits. But the Double Down casts an oversized shadow of American-style "super-sized" meals - tasty, but not so good for the body.
It's unlikely that the Double Down will have such an impact as to change the way the public think about what they eat.
In any event, the burger is only expected to be available in New Zealand for five weeks. However, it would be naive not to expect that time period to lengthen, if the cash registers keep ringing.
It will be worth seeing whether the public's tastebuds, and interest, are able to be maintained that long.
Feedback: editor@wanganuichronicle.co.nz.