By Daniela Sirtori and Lily Meier, Bloomberg
Taco Bell is hawking a lettuce-free stuffed tortilla smothered in cheese for $1 to help it bounce back from a parasite outbreak that has driven diners away.
Traffic to the company’s US locations has taken a hit since authorities tied cyclospora infections to shredded lettuce supplied by Taylor Farms and sold at Taco Bell in several states. Confidence in Taco Bell crumbled after the news emerged, with the share of diners saying they trust the brand “not much” or “not at all” increasing in polling by research firm Morning Consult.
The Mexican-inspired chain is responding in typical Taco Bell fashion, with social media posts and ads that highlight customer comments such as “You’re my ride or die” and “We ain’t mad at you.” Taco Bell is offering Enchiritos for $1, down from about $4.29, and regular nacho fries for $1, to bring diners back. The goal: “Just to show how much we appreciate you,” according to the company’s website.
Regaining customers’ trust is key for Taco Bell, which for years has been the best-performing chain in the portfolio of parent company Yum! Brands Inc.
Yum shares rose 1.1% at 12:20 p.m. in New York. They are down more than 9% since July 10, before authorities formally tied Taco Bell to the outbreak.
Taco Bell earlier removed all the affected lettuce from Taylor Farms from its locations, with some restaurants taking action before public-health authorities pointed to the supplier. This week, Taco Bell CEO Sean Tresvant appealed to customers directly on LinkedIn, pledging to “be transparent about what we know and what we are doing next.”
“We aren’t entitled to your loyalty,” he said. “We earn it one meal at a time.”
Taylor Farms has recalled products that went to 27 states. The US Food and Drug Administration said Sunday that a test tying a batch that wasn’t part of the current recall was a false positive, but that there is “overwhelming epidemiological data supporting the current voluntary recall by Taylor Farms.”