Taco Bell stops putting toys inside kids meals

Taco Bell became the first major restaurant chain that is stopping the industry tradition of placing cool toys inside kids meals, according to a statement released by the company.

Taco Bell announced that it is abandoning the practice of placing toys inside children's meals in the United States. The toys will begin to disappear from menus starting this month, and will disappear completely by next year.

“As we continue our journey to be a better and more relevant Taco Bell, food and children's toys just do not make sense for us,” Greg Creed, president of Taco Bell, said in a statement.

The decision may be financial, but nutrition advocates have urged fast food chains to stop using toys in menus for children for years. Critics have long argued that this practice served as bait to hook young children on fast foods loaded with calories, fat and salt.

With Tuesday's announcement, Taco Bell becomes the first national chain that voluntarily stopped selling kids meals with toys, although regional chain Jack in the Box stopped the practice in 2011.