Wendy’s is warning customers that their burgers or chicken sandwiches come without lettuce.
Heavy rains on farms where the fast-food giant grows lettuce have led to shortages in many of the chain’s more than 6,200 restaurants.
All American lettuce is grown in California and Arizona. Both experienced heavy rain and flooding in February, while California was hit again in March and April.
The chain’s app and website warn of the shortage, while servers are expected to do the same when customers order from kiosks. It does not apply to all restaurants.
Wendy’s told DailyMail.com this morning that it is working hard to resolve the shortage – but it is not yet known whether that will take days, weeks or months. A chain of that size cannot simply find a new supplier overnight.
But we can reveal that Wendy’s has a plan to prevent bad weather from negatively impacting salad supplies in the coming years. The salad is increasingly grown in greenhouses as part of a project that started in Canada in 2020.
Wendy’s Dave’s Single promotional photo – with the lettuce
Wendy’s warns of the lettuce shortage when customers open the app. Order kiosks in restaurants also carry the warning — and servers taking orders must tell customers as well
It is still unclear whether other restaurants will be affected by the bad weather affecting salad supplies. A similar lettuce shortage in late 2022 affected Taco Bell, Subway and Chick-Fil-A.
As soon as customers open the Wendy’s app, a warning message appears: ‘Some restaurants are currently experiencing bread lettuce shortages due to heavy rains in the growing region.
‘Your understanding is appreciated as we strive to provide a new solution to all our customers.’
Customers who order from affected restaurants will see the same message on the digital ordering kiosk or the servers will warn them.
After being served a lettuce-free Dave’s burger during a recent trip to Wendy’s, David Martin of LA, California said, “Come on!” You can’t serve a burger without lettuce. It’s a key repair.”
Wendy’s told DailyMail.com this morning that it hopes to resolve the shortage ‘very soon’. It was also said that salads and wraps would not be affected.
‘WWe are experiencing shortages of sandwich lettuce at certain restaurants due to the bad weather conditions that have affected the growing region.’ a spokesperson said.
‘Lettuce for salads and our grilled chicken wrap are available. We expect this to be temporary and will be available again very soon.”
Too much rain is just as bad for plants as too little rain, because farmers can always irrigate dry land.
Heavy rain also damages plants – both the leaves when they fall and then the roots – and it also washes away nutrients. It also causes mold and mildew to spread and makes harvesting more difficult.
Wendy’s has taken steps to prevent lettuce shortages due to bad weather in the US. In October, the company announced it would move more of its lettuce supply to greenhouses after quality and availability issues.
“We’re seeing more and more extreme weather events,” Chief Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Officer Liliana Esposito said in an interview with Bloomberg last year.
‘It’s actually about supply security, that you can create a more stable, less volatile supply.’
One customer complained this week that not only did he not get lettuce, he also didn’t get tomato in his burger.
Wendy’s grows more lettuce under greenhouses – like this one in Canada – to avoid the effects of bad weather
A Wendy’s customer got a burger without tomoto and lettuce
Post a photo, he wrote on X: ‘I have, among other things, a Jr. Ordered the Bacon Cheeseburger – and I know there’s a delivery problem with the lettuce – but where’s the tomato slice?’
It’s not the first time fast food fans have been hit by a lack of lettuce. In November 2022, Taco Bell, Subway and Chick-Fil-A ran out.
At the time, Taco Bell’s app displayed a banner warning: “National Lettuce Shortage” in bold letters, telling customers that “Due to an industry shortage, we may be out of an ingredient at your local restaurant.”
Meanwhile, Wendy’s faced backlash on social media in February over plans to try Uber-like “surge pricing.”
DailyMail.com broke the story after discovering documents showing how Wendy’s viewed dynamic pricing
Our story was widely picked up and Americans reacted with horror at the idea that they could be expected to pay higher prices at busier times of the day.
“Wendy’s is hardly worth it as it is,” one X user wrote in response to the news. “Who is going to pay the high prices for a mediocre burger?”
Days later, the Dublin, Ohio-based company returned. While it admitted it would change prices, it said this would be to make them lower at slower times of the day. It denied it would increase these as restaurants become busier.
