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Based in Atlanta, Georgia Chick-fil-A Inc. is cutting about 10,000 hours of work per day at its locations through automation of lemon squeezing, which produces the juice used in one of the fast-food chain's most popular drinks, according to reports.
Bloomberg reports that the company, which has branded the slogan “eat more chicken,” has a plant just north of Los Angeles where the machines occupy a larger space than a typical Costco Wholesale.
The same machines occupying the space are tasked with squeezing 1.6 million pounds of lemons before collecting the juice and sending them to Chick-fil-A locations across the country. Once at the restaurant, staff members add sugar and water to create the company's trademark lemonade.
Before robots were incorporated into the process, restaurant staff members were responsible for squeezing lemons, sometimes resulting in injured fingers.
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An outdoor patio at a Shoreview, Minn., Chick-fil-A, an American fast-food restaurant chain specializing in chicken sandwiches. (Universal Image Group via Michael Siluk/UCG/Getty Images/Getty Images)
By taking work out of workers' hands and streamlining it through automation, the company hopes to make work more attractive at its locations.
“You start doing the math, and there won't be enough team members,” Mike Hazelton, of Chick-fil-A vice president of supply chain procurement and operations, told Bloomberg.
The lemon-extraction site is said to have 120 workers, to maintain the equipment and ensure that the juice produced meets quality standards.
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Ripe lemons hang on a lemon tree in front of a house on March 29, 2023 in Portugal. (Viola Lopez/Photo Alliance via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Once the truckload arrives, an employee signs the shipment before the machines begin the process from fruit to juice.
Even the oils from the peels are extracted during the process before being sent to cosmetics and fragrance companies, bringing in a new stream of revenue for Chick-fil-A.
Bloomberg reports that almost all of the lemons are used up during processing at the factory, resulting in about 40% more efficiency than workers squeezing lemons.
Chick-fil-A did not immediately respond to Fox Business' request for more information about the process and what it means for the business.
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A Chick-fil-A restaurant in Indianapolis in May 2019. (iStock/iStock)
Chick-fil-A isn't the only company looking for ways to use technology for automation.
Last year, Yum! Brands, operators of KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and The Habit Burger Grill restaurants, are planning to adopt the technology. “AI-powered” fast food, According to a Wall Street Journal report.
The company continues to increase investment in technology and automation, with about 45%, or $30 billion, of sales going digital, which was nearly double from 2019, Joe Park, Yume's chief digital and technology manager, told the newspaper. That's nearly double the 2019 level.
The move came as states like California raised the minimum wage. In California, most fast-food workers were bumped to at least $20 an hour when a new minimum wage law went into effect in April.
As a result, most restaurant operators are turning to AI to cut costs and increase sales, the Journal reported.
For fast-food giants like Yum, the use of AI aims to go beyond improvement Customer experience.
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Yum! There's a mobile app for restaurant managers called SuperApp, which the Wall Street Journal reports is testing generative AI, allowing team members to ask operational questions like how to set the oven temperature. The app, used by more than 8,700 Pizza Hut and KFC establishments, can also be used to purchase ingredients and set employee shifts, Park told the Journal. And a new augmented reality feature can help teach employees how to create new menu items.
Fast-food chains have also been increasing investments in technology such as digital ordering and more drive-throughs since the Covid-19 pandemic.
While some worry AI may take over the needs of human workers, a Yum! “Its employees will always play an important role,” the spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal.
Fox News Digital's Pilar Arias contributed to this report.