Brethren Benefit Trust celebrates 'no smoking' decision.

The next time you sit down to eat in a KFC or Pizza Hut restaurant, you may notice something is missing--second-hand smoke. Yum! Brands, parent company of the two fast-food chains, based in Louisville, Ky., announced Aug. 12 that "no smoking" signs will be going up across the country beginning immediately. The new policy affects the 1,200 KFC and 1,675 Pizza Hut restaurants owned by the company. Franchisees will be encouraged to adopt their own smoke-free policies.

At the Yum! annual shareholder meetings in 2002, 2003, and 2004, Brethren Benefit Trust (BBT) presented a resolution seeking a no-smoking policy in response to the 1981 Church of the Brethren Annual Conference statement on tobacco. Although the resolutions did not pass, they did bring the issue of second-hand smoke to the attention of the company's board and management, according to a Yum! representative.

"We applaud Yum!'s decision and celebrate with our Brethren Foundation clients and Brethren Pension Plan members whose investments in stocks provide the opportunity for BBT to engage in socially responsible investment initiatives," said Wil Nolen, BBT president. "This action is proof that small voices can make a difference."

The nearly $400 million BBT manages consists of assets from 200 Brethren Foundation clients and retirement monies of more than 4,000 Brethren Pension Plan members. BBT manages about $1.17 million in Yum! stock.

At the 2004 annual meeting of Yum! Brands, BBT representatives were joined by Jennifer Hollifield of the American Lung Association of Kentucky. In response to Friday's announcement, she said, "It's great to see that Yum! Brands is being proactive and taking the initiative to make their restaurants smoke-free."

Yum! Brands has more restaurants around the world than any other company. Its Taco Bell, Long John Silver's, and A&W All-American Foods chains are already smoke-free in company-owned restaurants within the US.

"We are taking this action today to help heighten awareness of second-hand smoke issues raised by US Surgeon General, Richard Carmona, who has indicated second-hand smoke may be harmful and hazardous to the health of the general public," said Gregg Dedrick, KFC president, and Peter Hearl, president of Pizza Hut, speaking Friday during a press conference. "In our opinion, going smoke-free is simply the right thing to do."

For more information about BBT and its ministries, go to www.brethrenbenefittrust.org.

Source: 8/17/2005 Newsline
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