CKE Settles Food Safety Concerns

In response to questions from guests and investors, CKE Restaurants, Inc., parent company of Carl's Jr. and Hardee's restaurant chains, announced today that it has not purchased any of the meat from Hallmark Meat Packing or Westland Meat Co. that has been implicated in the recently-announced USDA Class II recall.

The following guidelines apply to both the Carl's Jr. and Hardee's brands:

* All meat products are purchased from USDA-approved facilities and must comply with USDA requirements for food safety and sanitation. Suppliers must also comply with stringent specifications and standards required by CKE Quality Assurance Department.

* Suppliers and products are evaluated for compliance to company specifications, standards and regulatory requirements through routine production facility inspections and product audits.

* In addition to performing inspections and product audits, the CKE Quality Assurance Department requires nationally recognized, independent audits for all supplier facilities.

* CKE specifically prohibits the use of "downer" cattle by suppliers.

* CKE's premium line of Carl's Jr. Six Dollar Burgers and Hardee's Thickburgers are made with high-quality, 100 percent Black Angus beef from USDA certified steers and heifers, three years of age or younger.