Beef producers, Taco Bell® again partner to move steak

DENVER, Colo. (November 30, 2001) -- With customers continuing to demand steak at restaurants, America’s beef producers and Taco Bell have teamed up again to promote a new beef product following a successful partnership earlier in the year.

This time, beef producers and Taco Bell are working together to promote the new Steak Grilled Stuft Burrito[js1] ™. The promotion began November 21 and runs through the end of the year. Taco Bell plans to promote the new menu item at more than 6,300 participating restaurants nationwide.

A partnership earlier this year helped launch the Grilled Steak Taco, a product that proved to be very successful.

“We are pleased to work with Taco Bell again to help satisfy consumer demand for beef,” said Sid Sumner, vice chair of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board (CBB)/National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Joint Food Service Committee and a beef producer from Bartow, Fla. “Through their beef checkoff, producers are helping promote a great tasting steak product and working to boost beef sales.”

The timing of this effort is especially exciting, said Sumner. “The promotion is coming at a time of year when folks will be shopping for the holidays, and as they shop, many of them will be looking for a delicious, portable meal while they're on the go,” he said.

The Grilled Stuft Burrito is the restaurant chain’s newest permanent burrito. The promotion beginning this month focuses all media and merchandising materials on the steak version of the product – building off the successful introduction of the carne-asada style steak in February 2001.

The Grilled Stuft Burrito is among Taco Bell’s largest at 11.5 ounces, filled with three ounces of steak, beans, rice, Pepper Jack sauce, Fiesta Salsa, and three cheeses. It is then grilled to create a hot, satisfying and portable burrito with exceptional taste. The Steak Grilled Stuft Burrito will be priced at approximately $2.89.

“The current marketing program was market-tested in February 2001,” said Jeff Fox, vice president of national marketing for Taco Bell Corp. “We saw 50 percent of all Grilled Stuft Burritos sold in the steak version. Similar national results in the 6,300 participating stores will require over two million more pounds of steak in five weeks to meet the anticipated demand.”

As part of the partnership, the “Beef Check” logo will appear on Steak Grilled Stuft Burrito promotional materials. A television commercial is being planned that will exclusively feature the steak version of the new burrito. The product is to become a permanent menu item at Taco Bell.

Within the beef industry, this promotional program is being coordinated on behalf of the CBB and state beef councils by NCBA. The participation of state beef councils is being encouraged, just as the councils partnered with Taco Bell at the state level on creative support for the Grilled Steak Taco, contributing to its success with consumers.

During the first two weeks of a four-week Grilled Steak Taco promotion in February 2001, Taco Bell sold more than two million pounds of beef. By July, more than 12.5 million pounds of the taco product had been sold – more pounds of steak than the corporation sold in all of 2000. The product was so popular, another round of promotion was launched in July and August. During this time, Taco Bell sold 28,835,920 Grilled Steak Tacos, equal to 2,703,368 pounds of steak. Including other menu items, more than three million pounds of steak were sold in the six-week period.

“Consumer preference for beef is real, and continues to grow,” said Sumner. “We have already learned from working with Taco Bell in 2001 that a focused strategy of partnering with high-volume restaurant chains is an efficient use of checkoff dollars and an effective way to achieve the goals set in our Long Range Plan. Also, local support of large national chains cements these partnerships and offers opportunities for extended sales of beef products.”

Taco Bell Corp., a subsidiary of Tricon Global Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: YUM), is the nation’s leading Mexican-style quick service restaurant chain serving tacos, burritos, signature Chalupas and Gorditas, nachos and other specialty items.  Taco Bell serves over 35 million consumers each week in nearly 6,700 restaurants in the U.S.  In 2000, Taco Bell generated $5.1 billion in system-wide sales.  For more information, visit www.tacobell.com.

This foodservice partnership was funded in part by beef producers through their $1-per-head checkoff. The national beef checkoff is administered by the CBB, a 110-member board appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture to oversee the collection of the checkoff, certify state beef councils, implement the provisions of the federal order establishing the checkoff and evaluate the effectiveness of checkoff programs.

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Producer-directed and consumer-focused, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association is the  trade association of America’s cattle farmers and ranchers, and the  marketing organization for the largest segment of the nation’s food and fiber industry.