SEX, BOMBS & BURGERS

KFC made a lot of American fans happy this week when it announced that it was extending its Double Down sandwich into the summer. The DD was supposed to be a limited-time offer that would end on May 23, but thanks to having sold 10 million since its official launch on April 12, the Colonel has reconsidered.

"This truly is an example of 'popular demand,'" an executive said in a press release. "Our plans were to feature the product only through May 23, but millions of Double Down fans have spoken and we won't disappoint them. You'll continue to be able to get the Double Down at KFC this summer."

For those unfamiliar with the Double Down, it's a truly divisive piece of food. With two chicken breasts sandwiching some bacon, cheese and sauce, and no bun to speak of, the DD alternately evokes horror from people concerned about healthy eating, or squeals of anticipation from junk-food aficionados:



The tale of the tape: the DD packs a whopping 540 calories, 1,380 milligrams of sodium and 23 grams of fat. As some would say, it's a heart attack waiting to happen. But, as the old saying goes, everything good is bad for you, as 10 million sales seems to prove.

Canadian junk-food fans, unfortunately, must look on their American cousins with envy as there is still no sign of the Double Down north of the border.

Coincidentally, the chicken sandwich was a hot topic of discussion amongst journalists at last week's launch of Mobilicity, Canada's newest cellphone company. The guy who runs the carrier, John Bitove, also owns Priszm Income Fund, which operates a host of businesses including XM Satellite Radio (Canada), plus the Canadian arms of Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and, of course, KFC.

Those of us who attended were treated to lunch, and it went without saying as to who was catering: pizza and the Colonel's chicken were the order of the day. What was funny is that Bitove and other Mobilicity staff probably fielded as many questions about when the Double Down would arrive in Canada as they did in regards to their cellphones. Alas, nobody could say.

Kudos, then, to Mr. Bitove for injecting some much-needed competition into the Canadian mobile market, but a big "fail" for not injecting us with the hot, salty calories we're apparently craving.