By Daniela Sirtori and Lily Meier, Bloomberg<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Traffic to the company\u2019s 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 \u201cnot much\u201d or \u201cnot at all\u201d increasing in polling by research firm Morning Consult.<\/p>\n
The Mexican-inspired chain is responding in typical Taco Bell fashion, with social media posts and ads that highlight customer comments such as \u201cYou\u2019re my ride or die\u201d and \u201cWe ain\u2019t mad at you.\u201d Taco Bell is offering Enchiritos for $1, down from about $4.29, and regular nacho fries for $1, to bring diners back. The goal: \u201cJust to show how much we appreciate you,\u201d according to the company\u2019s website.<\/p>\n
Regaining customers\u2019 trust is key for Taco Bell, which for years has been the best-performing chain in the portfolio of parent company Yum! Brands Inc.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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 \u201cbe transparent about what we know and what we are doing next.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe aren\u2019t entitled to your loyalty,\u201d he said. \u201cWe earn it one meal at a time.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u2019t part of the current recall was a false positive, but that there is \u201coverwhelming epidemiological data supporting the current voluntary recall by Taylor Farms.\u201d<\/p>\n
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