BACKGROUND

For Anheuser-Busch, sustainability is its business. It benefits our communities, consumers, and ultimately the company itself. Because without a healthy environment, there’s no barley, and no beer. That’s why the company brews 95% of what it sells locally, already makes more than half of its packaging from majority-recycled content and is on target to get 100% of its electricity from renewable sources.

In 2018, this belief inspired Anheuser-Busch to create Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold, the first mass organic beer in America. An instant success. But as the need for organic ingredients grew, it confronted a shocking reality: barely 1% of U.S. farmland is organic and farmers were unable to make the organic transition. Anheuser-Busch saw an opportunity to leverage its unique position that combines its scale as the world’s largest brewer with local presence, to bring about significant change, and lead the change towards a healthier, more sustainable farming system.

SITUATION

Under immense pressure to grow more, faster, and cheaper, American farmers have been forced to rely on dangerous pesticides, herbicides, and artificial fertilizers, contributing to an unsustainable farming system that’s harming biodiversity, destroying our ecosystems and eroding our soil. Organic farming practices have none of these effects, are safer for farmers and their families, and produce healthier, more nutrient-dense crops.

And while 90% of Americans want to buy organic food and drinks, there’s less than 1% of America’s farmland that’s organic. The reason? Transitioning a conventional farm to an organic one takes three extremely challenging years—roughly the amount of time soil needs to return to its natural state. During this time farmers face reduced yields—and therefore reduced profits, intense re-training, and the uncertainty of finding buyers in an unfamiliar market. It’s an impossible challenge for struggling family farms, especially with the current lack of government support.

IDEA

Contract for Change is a revolutionary agreement between one of the world’s largest buyers of grain–Anheuser-Busch–and American farmers, created to change the future of America’s agriculture. It sets farmers up for a successful organic transition by addressing the three biggest barriers they confront:

·       Farmers sign today and are guaranteed that Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold will be their first organic customer after the 3-year transition.

·       Anheuser-Busch commits to buy crops grown during the transition for its yearly production of non-organic beers at a 25% higher price, so farmers don’t lose money.

·       The contract provides in-depth training in organic farming practices, through the most trusted agricultural organizations such as the Organic Trade Association and the United States Department of Agriculture.

STRATEGY

Our research took us to rural Idaho, where we spent time getting to know farmers and really understand the barriers they face when transitioning their land to organic. We learned that an organic future wouldn’t happen with a campaign, but that we needed to come up with a concrete, scalable and long-term solution that had the power to spark an organic revolution. That solution was Contract for Change.

To develop the contract, we brought Anheuser-Busch agronomists, marketers, supply chain managers and legal teams together with the most important and trusted agricultural organizations, such as The Organic Trade Association, California Certified Organic Farmers, the Idaho Barley Commission, Sustainable Food Lab and the United States Department of Agriculture.

To introduce Contract for Change to the farming community and enlist growers, we then created a hyper-targeted integrated communication plan, that used farmers’ preferred media, but also leveraged our existing relationships with the community.

EXECUTION

After a short pilot in 2019, Contract for Change was offered to all American farmers through a hyper-targeted approach towards the farming community. Anheuser-Busch agronomists partnered with organic trade groups to discuss the program in their communities. In support, we launched a hyper-targeted campaign via local media (radio, print, and wild-postings). Facebook ads, email, and agricultural publications helped spread the word, and we even mailed personalized copies of the Contract for Change to farmers across America. PR outreach led to national coverage from agricultural publications like Organic Insider and Green America, as well as mainstream media such as Marketwatch, Business Insider and Forbes.

Through a special phone number and website, farmers could inquire and apply for the contract.

The targeted campaign ended in July 2020, but Contract for Change is still being offered today and will be for many years to come, helping secure the future of America’s organic farmland.

IMPACT & RESULTS

175 farmers are already part of Contract for Change, and 104,000 acres–4% of America’s total barley farmland–have begun transitioning to organic. Contract For Change will triple organic barley acreage by 2023, marking an unprecedented contribution to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals: smaller carbon footprints, improved soil health, and cleaner air and water.

These farms will grow organic ingredients for generations, improving the world’s access not only to organic beer but all kinds of foods that help reduce the risks of cancer, allergic disease, and obesity.

By leading the change, Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold’s established itself as a true partner of the farming community. By 2023 the brand projects to expand production by 25%, keeping pace with the explosive demand for this groundbreaking beer. Contract for Change will be offered for years to come, effectively securing the future of America’s farmland.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR THE JURY

As the world’s largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch acknowledges the big impact it has on our planet and recognizes that the only way to continue brewing beer for the next 100 years and beyond is by creating a better world for its consumers, employees, and communities. Its combination of global scale and local presence puts Anheuser-Busch in a unique position to bring about significant change.

The company has developed multiple work streams: renewable electricity, water stewardship, circular packaging, climate action and smart agriculture, that contribute to its 2025 Sustainability Goals. Through its 100+ Accelerator Program, Anheuser-Busch supports start-ups that are building and scaling solutions to improve farmer productivity, product up-cycling, responsible sourcing, and green logistics to tackle some of the world’s most pressing sustainability challenges.

Just like the forementioned initiatives, Contract for Change fits within Anheuser-Busch’s philosophy that sustainability is its business.