McDonald's to Start Hawking Chicken Wings

McDonald's is about to make a revolutionary change to its menu: It's going to offer a chicken product that is actually identifiable as a part of a chicken. In short, the fast food giant is introducing chicken wings, Bloomberg reports. The "Mighty Wing" will start showing up on Sept. 9, be available nationwide by Sept. 24, and stick around through November, McDonald's has confirmed. They've already been seen in test markets Atlanta and Chicago.

McDonald's is such a huge chain, with 14,100 locations in the US, that the move might actually disrupt the chicken wing market. One analyst predicts that wing prices could rise by $2 a pound—a huge jump given that wings currently wholesale for $1.44 a pound. The Wall Street Journal notes that the market already saw a spike in January when McDonald's went on its last buying spree. The wing supply is inelastic, one analyst explains, because chickens are raised primarily for their breasts and legs. "Nobody's going to produce more chickens just to cut off the wings." (More McDonald's stories.)