Wendy's forced to take burgers off menu in some restaurants due to meat shortages

'Where's the beef?' social media users ask fast-food chain

Some Wendy’s branches have been unable to serve customers burgers as a result of coronavirus meat shortages, according to reports.

Fans of the restaurant posted their disappointment on social media when they claimed they were unable to order certain items off the fast-food chains regular menu.

According to a report by Bloomberg, Wendy’s app showed that only chicken items were available for takeout or delivery orders from at least some of its stores in California.

A number of social media users began asking “Where’s the beef?”, in response to the shortages, referring to a Wendy’s catchphrase from the 1980s.

A Wendy's spokesperson told The Independent: "It is widely known that beef suppliers across North America are currently facing production challenges. We continue to supply hamburgers to all of our restaurants, with deliveries two or three times a week, which is consistent with normal delivery schedules."

"However, some of our menu items may be temporarily limited at some restaurants in this current environment. We’re working diligently to minimise the impact to our customers and restaurants, and continue to work with our supplier partners to monitor this closely."

The reports come after the US faces significant meat shortages as some of the country's largest meatpacking companies have been forced to close due to coronavirus.

The meatpacking industry, where workers are thought to be at high risk of catching and spreading the Covid-19 due to close proximity and hazardous working conditions, has been hard hit by the virus.

Many plants have bee forced to close after numbers of employees began testing positive for the virus, causing strain on the food supply chain in the US.

At least 22 meatpacking plants have closed due to the outbreak according to the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.

“The food supply chain is breaking,” Tyson chairman John Tyson wrote in a full-page advertisement addressing plant closures across the US.

Last Tuesday President Donald Trump announced he intends to sign an executive order to force the industry to stay open under the Defence Production Act, mandating the plants to continue production.

At least 20 meatpacking and processing workers who contracted the disease have died so far according to an estimate by The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union last Tuesday.