Posted on: Thursday, November 20, 2003

KFC to drop TV ads touting 'balanced diet'

Associated Press

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Fried-chicken giant KFC said yesterday it is ending an advertising campaign that touted its chicken as healthy and that had prompted a consumer group to complain to federal regulators.

Company spokeswoman Bonnie Warschauer said the television ads will stop airing later this week, but declined to say whether the decision was related to the complaint. The ads touted KFC's Original Recipe fried chicken as part of a balanced diet.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest said KFC's decision to stop the ads signaled that the campaign had backfired. The group filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission this month claiming the ads were deceptive.

"This has been a PR debacle for KFC, trying to pass their fried chicken off as health food," said Michael Jacobson, the group's executive director. "It's just not flying."