Taco Bell Punts on Anti-Vegetable Ad

IRVINE, Calif. Taco Bell has given an anti-vegetable TV ad the boot before the Super Bowl.

The fast-food chain owned by Yum! Brands, Inc. made the decision after receiving complaints on Twitter at the urging of the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), The Associated Press reported.

CSPI, the consumer advocacy group, expressed its gratitude to Taco Bell for responding swiftly to the concerns.

"The last thing healthy fruits and vegetables needed was to be the subject of attack ads," CSPI stated.

The ad reportedly promoted Taco Bell's 12-packs of tacos and poked fun at guests who bring vegetables to parties, with a voiceover stating that bringing a veggie tray to a party is "like punting on fourth and one."

"We didn't want anyone to misinterpret the intent of the ad," a Taco Bell spokesman said in the AP story.

Some people weren't thrilled with Taco Bell's decision to pull the ad. "Fast Food chain caves to idiocy and pulls ads after Moonbats complain that Taco Bell mocked veggies," tweeted Mathiasian, a self-described "TEAPARTY Conservative".

Other felt differently about the ad: "It's so sad that Taco Bell would diss healthy food," wrote Terry Gips, the president of Sustainability Associates.  

A representative from Taco Bell told FOOD PRODUCT DESIGN the ad was a promotion for its Taco Bell 12-packs of tacos and not one of its Super Bowl ads.  Taco Bell on Tuesday released a TV commercial "Viva Young" that will run in the second quarter of Sunday's big game between the Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco 49ers. The ad depicts an old man saying goodnight to a nurse while in bed at a retirement home before sneaking out to party with his fellow fogies diving in a pool, putting on moves at a nightclub, getting a tatoo on his back, and of course, eating tacos.