To celebrate seven savory decades of KFC’s Original Recipe, the brand is serving up a world record-setting attempt highlighting the flavor of Colonel Sanders’ famed 11 herbs and spices. KFC will cook up more than 2,000 pounds of fried chicken and unveil it with a giant version of its iconic bucket as it attempts to set the world record for the largest ever serving of fried chicken – dishing up literally a ton of fried chicken.

Free samples will be available for hungry KFC fans eager to help set the record during their lunch hours. The giant bucket for KFC’s record-breaking attempt will be filled in Louisville around noon on Tuesday, Aug. 17, at the popular Fourth Street Live! area. KFC supplier Pilgrim’s Pride donated the chicken for the world record breaking attempt.

An overseas KFC set the record for the world’s largest serving of fried chicken in 2009. Last month, Brookville, Ind. unofficially broke the record while dishing out 1,645 pounds of chicken.

“To attempt to bring the world record back to its rightful home, Kentucky, we’ve teamed with Pilgrim’s Pride to cook up a giant bucket of fried chicken worthy of the 70th Anniversary of the Original Recipe,” said Doug Hasselo, chief food innovation officer for KFC. “We’re hoping plenty of KFC fans join us in this record-breaking endeavor tomorrow.”

The giant bucket, which is 8 feet tall and 9 feet wide, will feature the graphics seen on the “retro” bucket currently available in KFC restaurants for a limited time. The retro design is the same one used on Kentucky Fried Chicken buckets decades ago, including an image of Colonel Sanders and the patent number for the Original Recipe.

As part of the world record attempt, KFC will also donate thousands of pieces of chicken to the Dare to Care Food Bank in Louisville, an organization that distributes food through a network of 320 independent food pantries, emergency kitchens and shelters throughout the Louisville area.

A Salute to 70 Years of the Original Recipe’s 11 Herbs and Spices
KFC’s Colonel Harland Sanders debuted his secret Original Recipe of 11 herbs and spices in 1940, creating a legendary combination that has become a favorite of chicken-lovers everywhere in the 70 years since.

Today, the Original Recipe is locked in a safe in Louisville. Only a handful of people know the elements of the multi-million dollar recipe, and each is held to a strict confidentiality agreement. To protect the recipe’s secret legacy, one company blends a formula for one part of the recipe, while another spice company blends the rest. A computer processing system blends these two mixtures together, ensuring neither company has access to the full recipe.

In 2008, the secret recipe was temporarily moved offsite via high security motorcade while security upgrades were made to the vault.

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