TACO BELL PARTNERSHIP MOVES MORE STEAK

DENVER, Colo. (August 24, 2001) – Promotions for Taco Bell`s “New Grilled Steak Taco” have been so successful that the restaurant chain has doubled its sale of beef products this year. The promotions included a beef checkoff-funded partnership that extended the promotion and further increased sales.

Taco Bell sold 12.3 million pounds of steak products in 2000 and by July 2001 had already sold more than 12.5 million pounds of the new Grilled Steak Taco product. As steak demand doubles at the restaurant level, Taco Bell plans on fulfilling consumers` craving for quality steak with its partnership with the beef checkoff. The program is being coordinated on behalf of the Cattlemen`s Beef Board and state beef councils by the National Cattlemen`s Beef Association.

In the initial promotion in February 2001, Taco Bell introduced the new menu item at approximately 7,000 restaurants nationwide. The four-week promotion sold more than two million pounds of beef in the first two weeks and included only a modest checkoff investment. The product, made with marinated steak strips, is now a permanent menu item at Taco Bell.

Because of its popularity, a new round of promotion was launched for July and August, extending beef’s national advertising presence by six weeks. During the second round, Taco Bell sold 28,835,920 Grilled Steak Tacos. This equals 2,703,368 pounds of steak -- for tacos only. Including other menu items, more than three million pounds of steak were sold in the six weeks.

Half of these sales were in combination meals featuring two Grilled Steak Tacos with a drink. These “combo” meals were the most successful in recent Taco Bell history. Grilled Steak Taco sales continue to hold strong, even slightly increasing. Sales have been so robust that selected markets have chosen to extend promotional efforts beyond the six weeks initially planned.

"Taco Bell is very pleased with the popularity of the new Grilled Steak Taco since it was introduced earlier this year,” said Jeff Fox, vice president of national marketing for Taco Bell Corp. “Grilled Steak Taco is a great quality product and we look forward to many more exciting opportunities to highlight our steak products," added Fox.

State beef councils partnered with Taco Bell and local ad agencies at the state level on creative support for the New Grilled Steak Taco, extending a variety of promotional efforts.

As part of the partnership, the “Beef Check” logo is appearing on Grilled Steak Taco promotional materials, including the national television commercial.

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 7,000 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 Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board. This 110-member board is appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture to oversee the collection of the $1-per-head 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.