The thigh's the limit: Wingstop tests bone-in chicken thighs as wing prices surge to their highest since 2010

Fast-food chain Wingstop is testing selling bone-in chicken thighs as wings soar in price. 

The Dallas-based chain introduced the change two weeks ago as the company was forced to get inventive to find ways to counter the costs of its popular wings.

The move will mean more parts of the chicken are now used, Fox Business reported the company saying during a Q3 earnings call with analysts on Monday. 

Along with its popular wings , Wingstop has began trialling bone-in chicken thighs as a way to counter the rising cost of wings File

Wingstop CEO Charlie Morrison said the company had worked out a deal with its largest poultry supplier that will 'mitigate the impact of continued inflation of bone-in chicken wings over the near term.'

Bloomberg reported that wholesale wing prices in the northeast are at the highest cost since at least 2010, citing Department of Agriculture data. 

The chain is known for serving fried chicken wings in a variety of sauces which have drawn customers to the chain despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. 

Wingstop's digital sales ballooned to 47% of the business at the end of the first quarter as the shelter in place measures introduced earlier this year saw more people ordering take out. 

Fox reported that Wingstop estimated 95 net new openings for 2020 and netted 43, resulting in the best quarter for unit growth in four years.

Analysts speculated the boost could be due to the massive uptick in fast food and carry out during the early months of the pandemic. 

Despite the pandemic, Wingstop has been boosted by deliveries, which accounted for 47% of the business at the end of the first quarter amid shelter in place orders File

A Bloomberg graph shows that the prices of chicken wings have soared in the last few months