Day 024 - 15 Sep 94 - Page 29


     
     1
     2   Q.   What did you understand that to mean, "not be able to
     3        spell out the company's plans"?
     4        A.  That they had not made up their mind.  I presume that
     5        they were not already in possession of a final conclusion
     6        and just stalling on us.  I presumed -- I know otherwise
     7        now -- but I presumed then that they needed more time.  It
     8        is not unknown for a company the size of McDonald's, when
     9        you are dealing with not even the general counsel and
    10        generally speaking with outside counsel, to need to
    11        consult with management officials, and that can take some
    12        time to do so.  We presumed they legitimately needed more
    13        time to make that final call as to whether or not they
    14        would reach agreement with us.
    15
    16        We believed, when we heard from them, as they predicted
    17        after July 4th holiday, that they had, indeed, received
    18        that permission and were, indeed, making that agreement.
    19
    20   Q.   Because of these telephone conversations did you hold up
    21        developing a co-ordinated national announcement with the
    22        other fast food companies?
    23        A.  To the degree I can recall at this point, yes.  The
    24        companies did desire to know when we were going to say
    25        something publicly about it.  I obtained the permission of
    26        the Attorney General for us to hold off until we had
    27        everyone within the fold; everyone had reached agreement.
    28
    29   Q.   If we go to volume VI A, tab 39, we have a memo from
    30        McDonald's dated July 3rd 1986 from Tom Dentice:  "To:
    31        All owner/operators, zone/regional/district managers,
    32        regional operations/marketing personnel, all officers.
    33        Subject:  National Distribution of McDonald's Ingredient
    34        Brochures".  You were not aware of this memo?
    35        A.  I was not then; I believe I have only seen it as part
    36        of this law suit.
    37
    38   Q.   I will just read a bit of it out and then ask for your
    39        response having heard that.  "This is to advise you that
    40        on Monday, July 7, we will announce to the media that
    41        ingredient information brochures will be available at all
    42        U.S. McDonald's restaurants, effective August 15, 1986.
    43
    44        By way of background ... as you know, the enclosed
    45        brochure ... was developed for use in our New York state
    46        restaurants" -- called 'McDonald's Food:  The Facts',
    47        sorry -- "'Pre-market' copy testing and initial in-store
    48        customer reaction has been positive -- customers feel good
    49        about our making this information available."  This is an
    50        important sentence, "As a result of this customer 
    51        response, and because of the increasing attention being 
    52        given to the area of ingredient disclosure by state and 
    53        federal legislators, and the media, we feel this national
    54        announcement is both timely and appropriate."
    55
    56        Then it says they are going to send out a hundred copies
    57        of the brochure to all their stores by August 15th.  If we
    58        just go down to the paragraph starting, "These materials",
    59        this is the important paragraph:  "These materials, as
    60        well as additional copies of the ingredient brochure,

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