Chick-fil-A Is Taking on Blue Apron in an Unprecedented Move for a Fast-Food Chain The meal-kit business has been heating up recently as grocery chains start selling them and startups begin to burn out in the face of increased competition.

By Kate Taylor

entrepreneur daily

This story originally appeared on Business Insider

Chick-fil-A
Chick-fil-A's Dijon Chicken meal kit.

Chick-fil-A is making an unprecedented move to dominate its customers' lives: launching a meal-kit service.

On Monday, the chain announced it would begin selling "Mealtime Kits" at 150 restaurants in the Atlanta area in late August, making it the first fast-food chain to offer a meal-kit service.

Chick-fil-A's Crispy Dijon Chicken.
Image credit: Chick-fil-A


Like more traditional meal kits, such as Blue Apron or Home Chef, the five varieties of kit will include fresh, pre-measured ingredients. However, unlike the typical meal kit, Mealtime Kits can be bought at Chick-fil-A drive-thrus, counters or using the mobile app.

Chick-fil-A is selling five types of meal kits, with rotating availability: Chicken Parmesan, Chicken Enchiladas, Dijon Chicken, Pan Roasted Chicken and Chicken Flatbread. Each kit serves two people, costs $15.89 and is intended to be prepared in 30 minutes or less.

"We designed our offering so our guests don't have to order ahead, subscribe to a service or make an extra stop at the grocery store," Michael Patrick, innovation program lead at Chick-fil-A, said in a statement. "They simply pick up a Mealtime Kit at their convenience -- for example, when they're already at a Chick-fil-A restaurant grabbing a breakfast or lunch, or in the drive-thru on their way home."

Chick-fil-A's Chicken Flatbread.
Image credit: Chick-fil-A


The kits will only be available in the Atlanta area until mid-November, though there is a possibility that Chick-fil-A may roll them out more widely in the future.

Competition in the meal-kit business has been heating up recently, with Costco starting to sell Blue Apron kits in stores and grocery chain Albertsons acquiring Plated.

However, some meal-kit companies have struggled in the face of competition. On Monday, meal-kit company Chef'd shut down operations, following in the footsteps of shuttered startups like Sprig and Din.

Kate Taylor

Reporter

Kate Taylor is a reporter at Business Insider. She was previously a reporter at Entrepreneur. Get in touch with tips and feedback on Twitter at @Kate_H_Taylor. 

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