KFC was one of the first American fast-food chains to
expand internationally, opening outlets in Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico,
and Jamaica by the mid-1960s. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, it experienced
mixed fortunes domestically, as it went through a
series of changes in corporate ownership with little or no experience in the
restaurant business.
KFC's original product is pressure-fried
chicken pieces, seasoned with Sanders' recipe of 11 herbs and spices.
The constituents of the recipe are a trade secret. Larger portions of fried
chicken are served in a cardboard "bucket",
which has become a feature of the chain since it was first introduced by franchisee Pete Harman in 1957.