fast food chains

He's becoming notably absent these days. Fighting back against more upscale chains, McDonald's is more focused now on selling profitable coffee drinks and salads -- and downplaying its namesake clown, who's more associated with Big Macs and Happy Meals.

A judge in Louisville, Ky., has ruled that KFC must cooperate with franchisees on advertising, but that it can nix campaigns that it believes could hurt the brand. Disagreement over whether KFC should emphasize its fried or grilled chicken sparked the dispute.

McDonald's boosted its profit last year with the launch of new beverages and expansion in emerging markets. Can it keep up the growth this year as food prices rise? Chief Financial Officer Peter Bensen discusses the fast-food giant's strategy with DailyFinance.

A new lawsuit against Taco Bell claims processed beef used by the fast food giant contains mostly fillers. Taco Bell vigorously denies the claim, but the litigation is drawing new attention to the years-long controversy over processed meats.

Starbucks, the world's largest coffee-shop chain, on Wednesday unveiled a new logo that retains its iconic green mermaid but no longer includes the word "coffee," reflecting the company's efforts to expand sales through a broader array of menu and consumer-product items.

The ice cream drinks have been a fast-food favorite for decades. Now, McDonald's is considering giving them a new look -- serving the shakes in see-through plastic cups instead of the current white paper cup familiar to customers the world over.

Aggressive advertising by fast-food companies has taught 15% of preschoolers to ask to go to McDonald's every day, and convinced teens it's OK to consume as many as 1,100 calories in a single meal, says a sharply critical study of the industry's marketing tactics from Yale's Rudd Center for Food...

McDonald's, the world's largest hamburger chain, said global comparable sales grew 6.5% in October on strong performance of some local and value-menu items, as well as new offerings and store renovations.

McDonald's Corp. plans to raise prices in 2011 in anticipation of higher commodity costs and a hope that an improving economy will mean diners returning to fast-food restaurants instead of cooking at home. The company projects that commodity costs will rise 2-3% in 2011, Chief Financial Officer...

Low pay, lack of benefits and other issues drove Ayo Collins and three other Jimmy John's workers to enlist the aid of the Chicago-based Industrial Workers of the World to help organize 10 targeted Minneapolis stores. The effort fell short, by a vote of 87 to 85.