Anheuser-Busch

For more information on Anheuser -Busch Co., visit Britannica.com.

Type: Subsidiary
On the web: http://www.anheuser-busch.com

Anheuser-Busch Companies (A-B) wants to be the life of every party, whether with its beer, its theme parks or its majestic Clydesdales. The company is best known for Budweiser (the world's largest selling beer) and Bud Light, along with labels Busch and Michelob. A-B also owns a 50% stake in Mexico's GRUPO MODLEO, maker of Corona and Negra Modelo. In addition to beer, Anheuser-Busch produces energy drinks and non-alcoholic malt beverages. The company has several operations outside of brewing as well, including its Busch Entertainment theme-park business (which is slated to be sold). In 2008 Belgium brewer InBev acquired A-B for $52 billion in 2008 and created Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABInBev).

Officers:
Zone President, North America, Anheuser-Busch InBev: Luiz F. Z. de Saint Edmond
President: David A. (Dave) Peacock
VP Information and Business Services: Odilon Queiroz

Competitors:
Heineken
Molson Coors
SABMiller

Incorporated: 1979
NAIC: 31212 Breweries; 332431 Metal Can Manufacturing; 71311
SIC: 2082 Malt Beverages; 3411 Metal Cans; 7996 Amusement Parks

Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. is the largest brewer in the world, producing more than 100 million barrels of beer each year. The company's primary brands, Budweiser, Bud Light, Michelob, and Busch, are market leaders, enabling the massive St. Louis enterprise to claim nearly 50 percent of the U.S. beer market. Anheuser-Busch also operates nine theme parks, including Busch Gardens and Sea World properties at several locations.

Anheuser-Busch has been overseen by a member of its founding family since 1852, when Eberhard Anheuser, a prosperous soap manufacturer in St. Louis, bought a failing brewery from Bavarian immigrant George Schneider. The brewery's cool underground caverns near the Mississippi River were conducive to good brewing, and Anheuser was determined to turn the business around, but he lacked experience in the industry. Therefore, he hired his son-in-law, Adolphus Busch, a recent German immigrant schooled in the art of brewing, as his general manager. Together, Anheuser and Busch approached the enterprise with an aggressive business strategy and knowledge in quality brewing, two factors that have informed Anheuser-Busch's history ever since.

According to a popular company legend, Adolphus Busch obtained the recipe for his beer during a visit to a German monastery. There, monks provided him with a recipe and some of their brewer's yeast, the secret of their excellent beer. That recipe became the basis of Anheuser-Busch beers, and the original strain of yeast, allegedly preserved for years in Adolphus's ice cream freezer, remained in use in the 1990s. Although fictitious, the story highlighted two important philosophies at Anheuser-Busch: only the finest 'European' ingredients were to be used and the basic recipe would remain essentially unchanged.

In 1853, Anheuser and Busch increased the rejuvenated brewery's capacity from 3,000 to 8,000 barrels per year and began to expand their sales effort into Texas and Louisiana, as well as their home state of Missouri. The beverage became increasingly popular, as cowboys reportedly deserted their beloved red-eye whiskey for the light Bohemian beer, which became known as Budweiser in 1891, when the company purchased the rights to the name from the Bohemian brewer of 'Budweis.'

Budweiser's formula was enhanced by innovations in the brewing industry, particularly as pasteurization allowed for longer preservation periods. Moreover, newly invented refrigerated railroad cars permitted the transport of beer across state borders, and the bottling of beer allowed for easier distribution throughout the country. Regional brewers lost their advantage to large breweries such as Anheuser-Busch, which had found the means to supply beer to every state in the union. Despite the growth of its market, however, Anheuser-Busch still referred to itself as a 'regional brewery'--an institution that understood the distinct needs and tastes of local people.

Anheuser gave over the day-to-day operations to Busch in the 1870s. The company continued to prosper, and its workforce increased. During his tenure, Busch initiated the concept of considering employees members of a family: cared for and nurtured by the company and expected to remain loyal to the company for a lifetime. Anheuser-Busch considered this unique relationship between employer and employee, intimate and cooperative, vital in producing an outstanding product.

In the 1890s, Pabst, a competitor, was the best-selling beer in the United States. Busch and his 'family' thwarted the competition, however, with the introduction of Michelob in 1896. Forceful and frequent advertising promoted Budweiser and Michelob as the most popular beers in the country, and this goal was realized in 1901, when Anheuser-Busch became the leading national brewery.

Busch died in 1913, and his son, August A. Busch, Sr., took over; the younger Busch soon focused on diversifying the company's interests. Toward this end, Busch patented the first diesel engine, which was installed in the brewery to increase production. With the onset of World War I, Busch founded a subsidiary to produce the engines for Navy submarines. In addition, the Anheuser-Busch family purchased sufficient war bonds to finance two bombers--each named 'Miss Budweiser.'

After the war, in November 1918, President Woodrow Wilson signed the bill that instituted Prohibition. During this hiatus, Anheuser-Busch diversified into related fields. Malt syrup was canned and sold to people who required malt for their homemade brews. A refrigeration car company was established to transport perishables. Bevo, a soft drink made from ingredients similar to those in beer, was a great success for three years; it later failed when Prohibition laws concerning the use of yeast forced the company to change ingredients. Nevertheless, Anheuser-Busch began a trend toward diversification that would thereafter characterize the history of the company.

When Prohibition ended, the company experienced an unforeseen problem: people had become used to the sweet taste of the soft drinks and homemade brews that were available during Prohibition and were not willing to return to the more bitter commercial beer. In response, many brewers changed their formulas to achieve a sweeter taste. However, Anheuser-Busch refused to alter the formula for best-selling Budweiser, a decision endorsed by Dr. Robert Gall, the company's post-Prohibition brewmaster. Instead, the company initiated a major advertising campaign, challenging consumers to a 'five-day test.' Busch predicted that after five days of drinking Budweiser the consumer would not drink a sweet beer again. The advertising campaign was successful and established a trend for future consumer appeals.

During World War II, the company, led by Adolphus Busch III, again made substantial contributions to the war effort. Anheuser-Busch supplied the military with ammunition hoists, which were in production at a new company subsidiary. Moreover, the distribution of Budweiser beer was withdrawn from the Pacific Coast in order to supply the government with additional freight cars for war essentials, and spent grain was sold to financially troubled wartime farmers for poultry and livestock food. These patriotic actions elevated sales and advanced Anheuser-Busch's image as a patriotic company.

Between 1935 and 1950, the demand for Anheuser-Busch beer consistently exceeded the supply. In 1941, three million barrels of beer were produced, a figure that doubled by 1950. After the death of Adolphus Busch III in 1946, the company temporarily relinquished its lead in the industry. But with the succession of his brother, August 'Gussie' Busch, Jr., the company became the nation's top brewer once again.

August Busch, Jr., continued the practice of aggressive advertising established by his brother and father, which had involved the distribution of pocket knives and gold pieces; advertisements featuring reproductions of patriotic art such as 'Custer's Last Stand'; and the 1933 introduction of the famous Clydesdale horses, which remained popular in the 1990s. Under August Busch, Anheuser-Busch became the first brewery to sponsor a radio network. Positive consumer response prompted William Bien, the vice-president of marketing, to design a legendary advertising campaign: 'pick-a-pair-of-six-packs.' The campaign cost $2.5 million for two months, but was the most successful promotion in the history of the beer industry.

Despite its successful promotions, Anheuser-Busch entered a close competition at the beginning of the 1950s with Carling beer. During this time, a holiday was declared in Newark, New Jersey, in honor of the opening of a new Anheuser-Busch factory in that city. The new facility and new equipment necessitated a price hike, however, and Carling profited when its economical beer attracted customers put off by Anheuser-Busch's higher prices. In response, Busch introduced a new, low-priced lager beer and also pursued aggressive advertising promotions. In 1953, Anheuser-Busch bought the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team, targeting sports fans as a new category of consumers. Ultimately, the company was successful in rebuffing Carling's challenge.

Another brewery soon attempted to displace Anheuser-Busch from its number one market ranking. Decreasing the price of its beer in the 1960s, the Schlitz brewery hoped to force Anheuser-Busch into a price war. August Busch, Jr., remained confident that consumers would recognize Anheuser-Busch beer as superior in quality. Public opinion, however, was never tested, as Schlitz committed several marketing and advertising mistakes, and Anheuser-Busch retained its ranking.

During this time, August Busch III began his career at his father's company. After attending college for two years in Arizona and undergoing instruction in the art of brewing at a school in Chicago, Busch III started in an entry-level position at the company. In 1979, he took over as CEO, vowing to uphold Adolphus Busch's philosophy that natural ingredients be used to distinguish the company's fine brewing from the lower quality brewing of other beers.

The Miller Brewing Company challenged this philosophy during the 1970s and 1980s. Miller introduced a light, low-calorie beer in 1974, which became the best-selling beer for a few months. Although Anheuser-Busch soon edged back into the top ranking, it remained closely followed by the Miller brewery. In response to Miller's challenge, Anheuser-Busch introduced two light beers in 1977, Natural Light and Michelob Light, and the popular Budweiser Light was introduced soon thereafter.

Under Busch III, the company developed a unique strategy for dealing with competition that included introducing new brands, increasing the advertising budget, and expanding its breweries. Moreover, Busch III refocused the company's marketing practices to target more specific groups of consumers. He hired a team of 100 college graduates to promote the sale of Anheuser-Busch beers on college campuses. He also oversaw the development of new advertisements designed to appeal to the working class. In the process, the company's marketing budget quadrupled, and sales increased.

Busch III also adopted a 'management control system' that increased the efficiency of the company, redefining it as a modern corporation rather than a small family business. The new management system emphasized planning, teamwork, and communications, controls that, ironically, were intended to promote Anheuser-Busch's image as a regional brewery producing different beers to satisfy individual tastes. Anheuser-Busch continued to rank first in the brewing industry into the 1980s. By 1980, sales had reached 50 million barrels, increasing to 86.8 million barrels by 1992. Although competition with Miller remained intense, the Budweiser brand outsold its next four competitors combined.

Anheuser-Busch initially espoused an acquisition policy of purchasing companies that would enhance its brewing operations, including malt plants in Wisconsin and Minnesota, beer can factories in Florida and Ohio, and yeast plants in Missouri, New Jersey, California, and Florida. The St. Louis Refrigerator Car Company inspected and maintained the 880 refrigerated railroad cars used to transport the company's beer across the country. Manufacturers Railway shipped Anheuser-Busch beer after it was manufactured at the brewery with help from the malt and yeast subsidiaries.

Other subsidiaries, however, were soon established that were not directly related to the beer industry. Campbell-Taggart, Inc., the second largest bakery in the United States, was acquired in 1982, associating Anheuser-Busch's name with the food industry. In the 1980s, 6.7 percent of Anheuser-Busch's operating income was spent on food products. Another acquisition, Eagle Snacks, Inc., nationally distributed food products to bars, taverns, and convenience stores. Despite intense competition from Frito-Lay and Planters Peanuts, Eagle Snacks enhanced Anheuser-Busch's beer business by targeting consumers likely to purchase beer to complement their food products.

Anheuser-Busch also developed and acquired theme parks, forming the Busch Entertainment Corporation in 1979. The first 'Busch Gardens' opened 20 years earlier in Tampa, Florida, and featured a 300-acre park boasting one of the world's largest collections of wildlife under private ownership. Another tourist attraction, 'The Old Country,' in Williamsburg, Virginia, was modeled after villages in 17th-century Europe. Anheuser-Busch also acquired the eight-park Sea World chain of mostly aquatic theme parks in 1989 for $1.3 billion. Although these entertainment parks were not particularly profitable, they helped expose Anheuser-Busch's name to a new target group--a younger generation and their parents--and enhanced the company's reputation for contributing to the public welfare. Anheuser-Busch's ownership of the St. Louis Cardinals served a similar function.

Anheuser-Busch also devoted considerable energy to nurturing its foreign market. The corporation formed Anheuser-Busch International, Inc. in 1981 to expand its presence in the global beer market through joint ventures, licensing agreements, and equity investments in foreign brewers. The corporation's timing in this venture proved fortuitous: the fall of trade barriers and conversion of formerly communist and socialist governments to free enterprise systems opened a wealth of opportunity for Anheuser-Busch. By 1993, the company's beers were offered in 21 European countries and ranked as the second most popular lager beer in the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom. Budweiser was introduced to Japan in 1981 and stood as that country's leading import by the early 1990s because of successful promotion to the young adult market. With a nine percent market share worldwide, Anheuser-Busch had the largest export volume of any American brewer in 1993, accounting for more than 45 percent of U.S. beer exports.

During the early 1990s, Anheuser-Busch was compelled to face the declining--and more discerning--use of alcoholic beverages among Americans. The company had introduced LA, the first low alcohol beer, in 1984, but this product did not prove widely successful. LA was replaced by O'Doul's in 1990, however, which soon became the nation's most popular nonalcohol brew. Moreover, as Americans' tastes grew more refined and microbreweries made unprecedented inroads into the modern beer industry, Anheuser-Busch sought to enhance the appeal of its brew. The company introduced eight new beers between 1984 and 1991, and, by 1993, Anheuser-Busch offered 19 beer brands, three of which were imports. Anheuser-Busch's Bud Dry and Ice Draft from Budweiser appealed to such premium beer drinkers. New brand introductions did not seem to detract from Budweiser's brand power; the new variations captured 17 percent of the market, while Bud only lost half a share point.

As the decade progressed, so too did the growth of the craft-brewing industry, forcing the nation's three largest brewers to take heed of the beer industry's upstarts. Anheuser-Busch's closest rivals, Adolph Coors Company and Miller Brewing Company, introduced a host of new brands during the mid-1990s as a riposte. Anheuser-Busch followed suit, but to a much lesser extent, pursuing a more conservative strategy that proved to be a prudent approach later in the decade when many of the specialty brands introduced by the big breweries were confirmed failures. Bill Weintraub, the senior vice-president of Adolph Coors, noted as much. 'I think they've (Anheuser-Busch) understood that supporting their core brands is a smarter way to build brands over the long term,' he conceded in the May 5, 1997 issue of Brandweek. Although Anheuser-Busch invested substantially in the craft-brewing phenomenon--including signing a distribution and equity partnership agreement in 1994 with Red Hook Brewery, a leading craft brewer--the company's primary focus was on its core brands.

Amid a flurry of new beer brands introduced during the mid-1990s, Anheuser-Busch scaled back its operations, divesting properties while other large brewers expanded their portfolios. In 1995, the company announced it was severing its ties with Eagle Snacks after 17 years of losses. Concurrently, Anheuser-Busch announced it was divesting itself of the St. Louis Cardinals and Busch Memorial Stadium properties. In 1994, the baseball franchise posted a loss of $12 million, and Eagle Snacks racked up $25 million in losses. The divestitures were made so that the company could direct more of its attention and resources to beer and theme parks, the two principal areas of Anheuser-Busch's focus for the future.

Of particular importance was injecting new life in the company's all-important Budweiser brand, which was suffering from stagnant sales growth as the company entered the mid-1990s. Internationally, the company was realizing encouraging growth, thanks in large part to investments such as the 50 percent of Grupo Modelo (brewer of Corona beer) acquired in 1993 and the majority stake purchased in the Chinese brewer Budweiser Wuhan International Brewing Company, in 1995, but domestically the brand's sales had flattened. The task of spurring Budweiser sales fell to August Busch IV, whom many regarded as the next in line to lead the family business. (In 1997, August Busch III announced his intention to retire in 2003.) Under the 30-year-old's direction, a revamped marketing plan was developed that aimed at winning over younger consumers, who had gravitated to imports and microbrews. 'There was a culture weaved into the Budweiser brand,' the younger Busch explained to Fortune on January 13, 1997. 'No one wanted to change it.' August Busch IV spearheaded the widely popular 'talking frogs' advertising campaign for Budweiser and the successful 'I Love You Man' advertising campaign for Bud Lite, both of which were credited with lifting sales. In 1997, two years after the irreverent, youth-oriented advertising campaigns were launched, annual worldwide beer volume (including the interests Anheuser-Busch held in other breweries) eclipsed 100 million barrels for the first time, as Budweiser sales moved measurably upward.

At the end of the 1990s, Anheuser-Busch's dominance of the U.S. beer industry testified to the prolific growth of the company during the 20th century. By 1999, the company's share of the U.S. beer market had risen to 47.5 percent, fueling confidence that August Busch III's goal of capturing 60 percent of the market by 2005 could be achieved.

Principal Subsidiaries

Anheuser-Busch, Inc.; Busch Entertainment Corporation; Manufacturers Railway Company; St. Louis Refrigerator Car Company; Busch Properties, Inc.; Metal Container Corporation; Anheuser-Busch Recycling Corporation; Anheuser-Busch International, Inc.; Busch Media Group, Inc.; Busch Creative Services Corporation; Busch Agricultural Resources, Inc.; Precision Printing & Packaging, Inc.

Principal Competitors

Miller Brewing Company; Adolph Coors Company; Heineken N.V.

Further Reading

Baron, Stanley Wade, Brewed in America: A History of Beer and Ale in the U.S., New York: Arno Press, 1972.

Delaney, Lawrence, Jr., 'Beer Brawl,' World Trade, March 1993, pp. 34-40.

The History of Anheuser-Busch Companies--A Fact Sheet, St. Louis: The Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc., 1992.

Khermouch, Gerry, 'Tapped Out Brewers,' Brandweek, May 5, 1997, p. 42.

Krebs, Roland, Making Friends Is Our Business: 100 Years of Anheuser-Busch, St. Louis: Cuneo Press, 1953.

Lubove, Seth, 'Unfinished Business,' Forbes, December 10, 1990, pp. 170, 172.

Melcher, Richard A., 'How Eagle Became Extinct,' Business Week, March 4, 1996, p. 68.

Sellers, Patricia, 'Bud-Weis-Heir,' Fortune, January 13, 1997, p. 90.

Wells, Melanie, 'Are Dynasties Dying?,' Forbes, March 6, 2000, p. 126.

— Updated by Jeffrey L. Covell

Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.

Type	Wholly-owned subsidiary
Founded	1852, incorporated in 1875
Headquarters	St. Louis, Missouri, United States
Key people	Dave Peacock (CEO)
Industry	Beverages, packaging, and entertainment
Products	Beers, lagers, malt beverages, energy drinks, bottled water
Revenue	▲$16.7 billion (2007)
Employees	30,849 (2007)
Parent	Anheuser-Busch InBev
Website	www.anheuser-busch.com

Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev, is the largest brewing company in the United States. The company operates 12 breweries in the United States and nearly 20 in other countries. It was (until October 2009) also one of America's largest theme park operators; operating ten theme parks across the United States through the company's family entertainment division, Busch Entertainment Corporation. It is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.^[1]

Contents 1 History 1.1 Acquisition by InBev 1.2 Changes introduced by InBev 2 Breweries 2.1 North American corporate headquarters and brewery 2.2 United States breweries 2.3 International operations 3 Beverage products 3.1 Budweiser family 3.2 Michelob family 3.3 Other A-B beer brands 3.4 Other beverages 3.5 Beers imported and distributed 4 Advertising 5 Environmental record 6 Additional subsidiaries 7 Other business relationships 8 St. Louis Cardinals 9 Wholesalers and distributors 10 Corporate leadership 11 References 12 External links

History

This section requires expansion.

Interior of the St. Louis brewery

Anheuser-Busch began as a small brewery located in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1860, Eberhard Anheuser, a prosperous German-born soap manufacturer, became owner of the struggling brewery. Adolphus Busch, Anheuser’s son-in-law, became partner in 1869, and became president when Anheuser died in 1880.

Adolphus Busch was the first U.S. brewer to use pasteurization to keep beer fresh^{[citation needed]}, the first to use artificial refrigeration and refrigerated railroad cars and the first to bottle beer extensively.^{[citation needed]} In 1876, Busch introduced America’s first national beer brand: Budweiser. In 1877, Busch introduced the company's first cola: King Cola.

Anheuser-Busch became the largest brewer in the United States in 1957.

Anheuser-Busch International, Inc. was established in 1981, and is responsible for the company's foreign beer operations and equity investments.

As of 2008, it has 48.9% share of beer sales in the United States (by barrels),^[2] and produces about 11 billion bottles of beer a year.^{[citation needed]}

Up until 2009, Anheuser-Busch was also one of the larget theme park owners/operators in the United States, with ten parks thoughout the country through its entertainment division, Busch Entertainment Corporation. On October 7, 2009, parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev announced plans to sell the division to The Blackstone Group for up to $2.7 Billion USD to relieve debt brought on by the acquisition of Anheuser-Busch by InBev in 2008.

Acquisition by InBev

Main article: Anheuser-Busch InBev

Rare Olive Drab Budweiser Can

On June 12, 2008, Brazilian - Belgian brewing company InBev announced that it had agreed to a US$ 46 billion dollar offer for the company.^[3] If this had been successful, it would have joined two of the world's four largest brewing companies (based on revenue) and create a company that brews three of the highest grossing beers in the world, namely Bud Light, Budweiser, and Skol. InBev also stated that the merger would not result in any U.S. brewery closures and they would also attempt to keep on management and board members from both companies.^[4] On June 25, 2008, Anheuser-Busch officially announced that they would reject InBev's offer and provide a restructuring of company to maintain shareholders and United States World Headquarters in St. Louis.^[5] On July 1, 2008, InBev urged Anheuser-Busch shareholders to vote in favor of the buyout as InBev felt the offer of $65 per share should be considered a reasonable offer in view of the falling stock market. The company had previously filed suit in Delaware, after the rejection of their offer, to ensure that the stockholders could oust Anheuser-Busch's 13 board members.^[6] On July 7, 2008, Anheuser-Busch filed a lawsuit against InBev to stop them from soliciting support of shareholders, stating that the company's offer is an illegal scheme. InBev was also accused of concealing that they do business in Cuba, which might have created additional obstacles to their efforts to operate in the United States.^[7]

On July 13, 2008, Anheuser-Busch and InBev said they had agreed to a deal, pending shareholder and regulatory approval,^[8] for InBev to purchase the American icon at $70 per share, creating a new company to be named Anheuser-Busch InBev. Anheuser-Busch would get two seats on the combined board of directors. The all-cash agreement, almost $52 billion in total equity, would create the world’s largest brewer, uniting the maker of Budweiser and Michelob with the producer of Stella Artois, Hoegaarden, Leffe and Beck's, Bass, Labatt and Brahma. The two companies would have yearly sales of more than $36.4 billion, surpassing the current No. 1 brewer, London-based SABMiller.^[9][10]

Changes introduced by InBev

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On November 18, 2008 the acquisition was completed and the company is now known as Anheuser-Busch Inbev. Within six months, InBev "turned a family-led company that spared little expense into one that is focused intently on cost-cutting and profit margins, while rethinking the way it sells beer."^[2] InBev is applying an approach that "stresses a sharp eye on costs and incentive-based pay structures" that it inherited from AmBev in a prior acquisition; among the changes:^[2]

• 1400 U.S. employees (6%) and 415 contractors were laid off
• introduced what InBev called an "increased focus on meritocracy" that means salaried workers receive a base salary targeted to be 80% to 100% of the market rate
• about 40 of its executives were granted a total of 28 million stock options, "potentially worth tens of millions of dollars to each recipient, if the company reduces its debt-to-income ratio by about half in five years"
• for senior management, elimination of executive assistants and private secretaries
• elimination of free beer formerly available at the theme parks
• announced it would end contributions to its pension plan for salaried employees in 2012
• ornate executive suites" were replaced by a "sea of desks"
• the number of company-supplied BlackBerrys for employees cut from 1200 to 720
• accounts payable terms lengthened to 120 days
• zero-based budgeting
• put all its corporate jets for sale
• announced that in January 2010, it will stop providing life insurance for retirees

These changes are also accompanied by changes in its advertising.

Breweries

North American corporate headquarters and brewery

Main article: Anheuser-Busch Brewery (St. Louis, Missouri)

See also: Alcohol laws of Missouri

Anheuser-Busch Brewery
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark District
The packaging plant in Saint Louis, Missouri
Location:	721 Pestalozzi, St. Louis, Missouri
Coordinates:	38°35′51″N 90°12′44″W / 38.5975°N 90.21222°W / 38.5975; -90.21222
Area:	142 acres[11]
Built/Founded:	1875
Architectural style(s):	Romanesque
Governing body:	Private
Added to NRHP:	November 13, 1966[12]
Designated NHLD:	November 13, 1966[13]
NRHP Reference#:	66000945

Anheuser-Busch InBev's North American headquarters are located in St. Louis, Missouri. The brewery there, the largest of the Anheuser-Busch breweries, was opened in 1852 and includes three buildings that are listed as National Historic Landmarks. At the headquarters, near downtown Saint Louis, free tours of the brewery are available to the public. The tour takes visitors through the complex, and those of the legal age can enjoy two free glasses of any Anheuser-Busch product, that is often brewed the very same day, in the Hospitality Room after the tour. Tourists can see beer being made in a working part of the brewery (from behind plexiglas shields).

The company keeps a rotation of its famous Budweiser Clydesdales at its headquarters, and visitors to the brewery can observe the Clydesdales in their exercise field and see their places in the carriage house. The bulk of the herd is kept at the company farm in St. Louis County. The farm, known as Grant's Farm (having been owned by former President Ulysses S. Grant at one time), is home to a menagerie of animals.

The brewery was designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1966.^[11][13] The landmarked area includes 189 structures spread over 142 acres (0.57 km²), including many red brick Romanesque ones "with square crenelated towers and elaborate details."^[11] The Brew House, built in 1891-1892, is particularly notable for its "multi-storied hop chandelier, intricate iron-work, and utilization of natural light".^[11]

United States breweries

In the United States, Anheuser-Busch operates 12 breweries:

• St. Louis, Missouri (world headquarters)
• Baldwinsville, New York
• Cartersville, Georgia
• Columbus, Ohio
• Fairfield, California
• Fort Collins, Colorado
• Houston, Texas
• Jacksonville, Florida
• Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California
• Merrimack, New Hampshire
• Newark, New Jersey
• Williamsburg, Virginia

International operations

Budweiser Stag brewery in Mortlake, London, UK

Outside the United States, Anheuser-Busch operates 15 breweries - 14 in China and one in the United Kingdom; In China, A-B operates Budweiser Wuhan International Brewing Company, Ltd. and Harbin Brewery Group Ltd which A-B fully acquired in 2004. Chinese production of AB products in China started, in Wuhan, after their purchase of a local brewery in 1997. In the United Kingdom, the Budweiser Stag Brewing Company Ltd. produces and packages Budweiser, but this brewery is due to close in 2010 as part of cost controls introduced following Anheuser-Busch's acquisition by InBev.^[14]

Budweiser is also locally brewed in eight other countries: Argentina, Canada, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Russia, South Korea and Spain.^{[citation needed]}

Anheuser-Busch strategic equity investments include:

• 49% of Grupo Modelo in Mexico^[15]
• 7% of Tsingtao Brewery Company Ltd. in China^[15] (19.9% was sold to Asahi)
• 34% of craft beer Redhook Ale Brewery^[16]
• 40% of Widmer Brothers Brewery^[16]
• 99.77% of Harbin Brewery^[17]

Beverage products

Anheuser-Busch's best known beers include brands such as Budweiser, Busch (originally^[when?] known as Busch Bavarian Beer) and Michelob families, Bud Light, and Natural Light. The company also produces a number of smaller-volume and specialty beers, nonalcoholic brews, malt liquors (King Cobra and the Hurricane family), and flavored malt beverages (e.g. the Bacardi Silver family and Tequiza). In addition to brewing its own beer, Anheuser-Busch is responsible for the importation and distribution in the U.S. of a number of international beers.^[18]

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Budweiser family Budweiser (World Beer Cup Bronze Medal, 1996) Bud Light Budweiser Select Budweiser Select 55 Calorie Budweiser American Ale (available October 2008) Bud Dry Bud Ice Bud Ice Light Budweiser Brewmaster's Private Reserve Bud Light Lime Bud Light Golden Wheat Budweiser & Clamato Chelada Bud Light & Clamato Chelada Bud Extra Michelob family Michelob Michelob Light (World Beer Cup Bronze Medal, 2006) Michelob Honey Lager Michelob AmberBock (World Beer Cup Bronze Medal, 1998) Michelob Golden Draft Michelob Golden Draft Light Michelob Bavarian Wheat Michelob Porter Michelob Pale Ale Michelob Dunkel Weisse (available Late 2008) Ultra Family Michelob Ultra (World Beer Cup Bronze Medal, 2004) Michelob Ultra Amber (World Beer Cup Silver Medal, 2006) Michelob Ultra Lime Cactus Michelob Ultra Pomegranate Raspberry Michelob Ultra Tuscan Orange Grapefruit Other A-B beer brands Busch Family Busch Busch Light Busch Ice Rolling Rock Family Rolling Rock Rolling Rock Green Light Rock Light The Natural Family Natural Light Natural Ice Specialty Brews Bud Extra Bare Knuckle Stout Anheuser World Lager (discontinued) ZiegenBock (Texas only) Ascent 54 (Colorado only) Redbridge (gluten-free) Landshark Lager Shock Top (Formerly Spring Heat Spiced Wheat) Skipjack Amber Lager (Mid Atlantic Only) Tambe Ale Wild Blue Seasonal Beers Sun Dog (New in 2008) (spring) Beach Bum Blonde Ale (summer) Jack's Pumpkin Spice Ale (fall) Winter's Bourbon Cask Ale (winter)

Other beverages Non-alcohol O'Doul's (World Beer Cup Gold Medal, 2006) O'Doul's Amber (4 World Beer Cup Medals) Busch NA Budweiser NA (Saudi Arabian Market) Budweiser NA Green Apple (Saudi Arabian Market) Energy Drinks 180 Blue 180 Sport Drink(discontinued) 180 Energy 180 Red 180 Blue Low Calorie 180 Sugar Free Monster Energy Specialty Organic Beers Stone Mill Pale Ale Wild Hop Lager Specialty Malt Beverages Bacardi Silver Peels (discontinued) Tequiza (discontinued) Tilt Spirits and Spirits Distribution Alliances Jekyll & Hyde Bluecoat Vodka Cape North Hammer and Sickle Vodka Ku Soju Margarittaville Tequila Purus Organic Wheat Vodka Vermont Spirits Malt Liquors Hurricane malt liquor Hurricane Ice King Cobra Minority ownership brands Red Hook Brewing Widmer Bros. Brewing Craft Distribution Alliances Goose Island Brewery Kona Brewing Company Ray Hill American Pilsner Starr Hill Brewing Fordham Brewing Company Old Dominion Brewing Company Beers imported and distributed Harbin Lager Tiger Beer Kirin Bass Ale Boddingtons Beck's Hoegaarden Leffe Stella Artois Löwenbräu Tennent's Ale Budvar Czechvar

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Anheuser-Busch Clydesdale at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia.

A pre-1911 "shorty" reefer bears an advertisement for Anheuser-Busch's Malt Nutrine tonic. The product was discontinued in 1942.

1898 magazine ad for Malt-Nutrine.

Prior to its acquisition by InBev, the company was known in the United States for its advertising presence, including a sports marketing division which creates advertising material for the Super Bowl and many other sporting events. Budweiser has sponsored horse racing events and motor sports including NASCAR and the "Budweiser King" championship top fuel dragster of Kenny Bernstein.

Busch television campaigns have included:^{[citation needed]}

• Clydesdales, used both at liberty and being driven in harness, such as:
  • The Budweiser Clydesdales pulling traditional beer wagons
  • The traditional holiday spot featuring the Clydesdales pulling a sleigh through a snowy town, concluding with a closeup of a wreath on a door.
  • Clydesdales playing football (with a couple cowboys as the audience, and a zebra for a referee)
  • A donkey that thinks he's a horse and wants to be one of the Budweiser Clydesdales
  • A Clydesdale foal, who dreams of making the hitch, pretending to pull the beer wagon, which is secretly being pushed from behind by his Clydesdale parents.
• Dalmatians, also associated with the traditional Budweiser Clydesdale iconography
• The "Gimme a light" spots;
• "You can call me Ray, or you can call me Jay" (as referenced in Being There and The Simpsons)
• Frogs saying "Bud-weis-er." The ad campaign later spawned additional characters: Louie and Frankie the chameleons and an inept ferret hit man.
• The annual Bud Bowl.
• The "Waazzzup" series.
• The "Real American Heroes/Real Men of Genius" series of humorous radio and television ads.
• In the past they have marketed their beer through the name NASCAR Busch Series and on Dale Earnhardt Jr's #8 Chevy Monte Carlo. Currently they sponsor Kasey Kahne's #9 Dodge Charger as well as numerous campaigns in the NHRA such as The Big Bud Shootout at the US Nationals and major sponsorship with Kenny Bernstein Racing
• Bud Man is an advertising character for Budweiser beer. He is a superhero and appears on many products aimed at coeds on University campuses. He also inspired Duffman, a character on The Simpsons.
• In the UK when Budweiser became the sponsor of the Premiership football league, a humorous series of adverts showed involving the subsequent (fictional) 'Americanisation' of the game, including such ideas as giving the teams more exciting names (The Portsmouth Pirates) and the merging of longtime rival teams Manchester City and Manchester United into one Team Manchester, all with the tagline "you do the football, we'll do the beer". Ironically, A-B, based out of a city where soccer has always been popular, is sponsor of the St Louis (formerly Busch) Soccer Club and owns the Anheuser-Busch Center in suburban Fenton, whose main attraction is a 10,000-seat soccer park that hosts the Missouri state championships.
• Current television commercials use the slogan "King of Beers."
• A widely-known "This Bud's for you" ad campaign

The company has long been known for its jingles. A few of them are:^{[citation needed]}

• "Here Comes the King" - heard annually over Christmas ads featuring Clydesdales
• "When You Say Budweiser, You've Said It All"
• "Cub Fan, Bud Man" - a Blues Brothers homage (based on their version of "Soul Man") done by Harry Caray for WGN-TV broadcasts of Chicago Cubs games
• "There Is a Tavern in the Town" - old song with wording changes including "Busch" instead of "wine"
• "Under the Anheuser Bush" (an early 1900s popular recording)

Since the acquisition by InBev, significant changes in advertising plans have been rolled out, predicated on the belief that "changing demographics and media habits no longer require spending as much on mainstream sports events":^[2]

• A-B is cutting its television advertising budget for the U.S. broadcast of the 2010 Winter Olympics and the 2012 Summer Olympics and "won't seek to be the exclusive beer advertiser" for those events
• dropping Omnicom Group's Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, and other advertising agencies "responsible for some of its best-known past ads"
• paying by the project rather than an annual lump sum
• reducing the annual number of new advertisements from 100 to 50-60.

Environmental record

In 2002, Researchers at the University of Massachusetts ranked Anheuser–Busch 40th among the "Toxic 100," a list of U.S. corporations most responsible for air pollution. The study found that Anheuser–Busch released 1,002,786 kg (2,213,657 lbs) of toxic pollutants annually into the air.^[19]

Anheuser-Busch has received numerous awards for its efforts to reduce its impact on the environment.^[20] In 1995 Anheuser-Busch's Baldwinsville brewery won an award for pollution prevention from the New York Governor for its use of a "comprehensive, energy-producing pollution-prevention system - bioenergy recovery - to treat wastewater from the brewing process." The brewery also reduced solid waste by nearly 70 percent from 1990 to 1994. In addition, the Baldwinsville brewery found markets for previous "waste" materials used in the fermentation of Anheuser-Busch beers.^[21] The Anheuser-Busch Recycling Corp. recycled more than 27 billion cans in 2006, a number far greater than what was used in its own packaging. Similarly, Anheuser-Busch has set short-term goals to reduce energy consumption 5% and increasing use of renewable fuel from 8 to 15% by 2010. Along with these goals, Anheuser-Busch has succeeded in cutting down its water use by 3 % since 2002.^[22] Anheuser-Busch is investigating several other renewable energy possibilities such as biomass, wind, solar, and landfill gas as a fuel to reduce the company's environmental impact. The Corporation has also made commitments to decrease its greenhouse gas emissions "by 5 percent from its 2005 baseline by 2010 as part of its membership in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Climate Leaders program."^[23]

The brewery also operates an environmental outreach program to encourage recycling, energy conservation, and habitat preservation, as well as to prevent littering and water pollution.^[24] For past 18 years Anheuser-Busch employees have participated in "Green Week", which focuses on environmental conservation education for employees and their families.^[23]

Anheuser-Busch states they do not use animal derived products, artificial ingredients, additives or preservatives at any stage of the brewing process or as part of the packaging in any of their range.^{[citation needed]} All Anheuser-Busch beers are brewed using water, yeast, barley malt, hops, and sometimes additional cereal grains. Anheuser-Busch eliminates the need for isinglass finings by settling and removing particles before fermentation. The beechwood aging process also helps to attract and remove yeast from the brew before the lagering process has ended.^[25][26] This only applies to the beers the company brews itself.

Additional subsidiaries

Anheuser-Busch subsidiaries include:^[27]

• Busch Entertainment Corp. is one of the largest U.S. theme park operators, with ten parks throughout the country including several Busch Gardens and SeaWorld locations.
• Anheuser-Busch Agricultural Operations: Produces and enhances the incoming quality of raw materials for the company's beers.
• St. Louis Refrigerated Car Co.: Manages rail/truck transload operation and other properties in St. Louis. This subsidiary was established on February 3, 1878 as Anheuser-Busch's first subsidiary to facilitate large-scale distribution of the company's products via the U.S. rail network as part of A-B's decision to promote Budweiser as a nationwide beer brand.
• Manufacturers Railway Co.: Provides terminal rail-switching services to south St. Louis industries. Its two trucking subsidiaries provide delivery of cans, bottles and outbound beer for four Anheuser-Busch breweries.
• Metal Container Corp.: Produces cans and lids for the company's brewing operations as well as for U.S. soft-drink companies.
• Anheuser-Busch Recycling Corp.: One of the world's largest recyclers of used aluminum beverage containers.
• Eagle Packaging, Inc.: Provides liner material for both the crowns and closures used in Anheuser-Busch packaging.
• Busch Properties, Inc.: Operates resort, residential and commercial properties.

Other business relationships

Owens-Illinois supplies glass bottles to many of the Anheuser-Busch breweries around the world including a brand new plant in Windsor, Colorado. Anheuser-Busch bought Longhorn Glass, a former Anchor Hocking Glass plant providing glass for the Houston Brewery, and has partnered with O-I to make glass bottles for A-B in several other cases.

Anheuser-Busch distributes Borba Skin Balance Water, Monster Energy, Lost Energy, Rumba Energy, and Icelandic Glacial spring water.^{[citation needed]}

St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals baseball club were owned by Anheuser-Busch from February 20, 1953 until the club was sold to a group of private investors on March 21, 1996. Busch Memorial Stadium, paid for and built by the brewery in the mid-1960s, was recently demolished and replaced by a new ballpark. Anheuser-Busch signed an agreement for the new ballpark to retain the "Busch Stadium" name on the new building through 2025.

Wholesalers and distributors

Anheuser-Busch delivers its products to retailers through a large network of wholesalers and distributors.^[28] In the United States, there are about 800 of these;^[29] One of the largest is Hensley & Co. in Phoenix, Arizona, with yearly sales of over 20 million cases of Anheuser-Busch beers.^[29], and whose chair is Cindy Hensley McCain, the wife of the Republican Presidential nominee for 2008, Senator John McCain of Arizona. The Gaudio family of Illinois hold the longest running wholesalers for Anheuser-Busch, dating back from 1904. Charles Gaudio started an association with Anheuser-Busch as a distributor in a southern Illinois town called Benld. Earl Gaudio, of Danville, IL celebrated 100 years of family ownership with Anheuser-Busch in 2004. He built his wholesaler in 1956. A. Gaudio, Earl's nephew, presides over the Jacksonville, IL distributorship. When he retired from baseball after the the 1968 Season, former New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals outfielder, Roger Maris was given a distributorship based in Gainesville, FL by August A. Busch, Jr..

Corporate leadership

Dave Peacock is the current President and CEO of Anheuser-Busch. He was appointed by InBev to head the new subsidiary.

A chronology of past corporate leaders (President and CEO) is as follows:

• 1860–1880 Eberhard Anheuser (1805–1880) predecessor company E. Anheuser & Co.
• 1880–1913 Adolphus Busch (1839–1913) incorporated Anheuser-Busch in 1875
• 1913–1934 August A. Busch, Sr. (1865–1934)
• 1934–1946 Adolphus Busch III (1891–1946)
• 1946–1971 August A. "Gussie" Busch, Jr. (1899–1989)
• 1971–1974 Richard A. Meyer (1916–1990)
• 1974–2002 August A. Busch III (b. 1937)
• 2002–2006 Patrick Stokes (b.1942)
• 2006–2008 August A. Busch IV (b.1964)
• 2008–present Dave Peacock

References

1. ^ "Welcome to Anheuser-Busch." Anheuser-Busch. Retrieved on August 18, 2009.
2. ^ ^{a b c d} "Unease Brewing at Anheuser As New Owners Slash Costs". Wall Street Journal. April 29, 2009. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124096182942565947.html. Retrieved 2009-04-30. 
3. ^ InBev Proposes Combination with Anheuser-Busch. Press release. InBev.
4. ^ ""InBev: U.S. Anheuser Breweries to Stay After Merger". Reuters (The New York Times). 2008-06-20. http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/business/business-inbev.html. Retrieved 2008-06-20. 
5. ^ "Anheuser-Busch set to snub InBev and propose own revamp". The Times. 2008-06-25. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/consumer_goods/article4215711.ece. Retrieved 2008-06-25. 
6. ^ "InBev pitches buyout bid to Bud shareholders". MSNBC. 2008-07-01. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25472139/. Retrieved 2008-07-01. 
7. ^ "Anheuser-Busch calls InBev takeover bid illegal". Business Week. 2008-07-08. http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D91PU0BO2.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-09. 
8. ^ "Anheuser-Busch, Brazilian Belgian firm InBev are brewin' up a merger". New York Daily News. July 13, 2008. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_world/2008/07/13/2008-07-13_anheuserbusch_belgian_firm_inbev_are_bre.html. Retrieved 2008-07-14. 
9. ^ De la Merced, Michael J. nytimes.com, Anheuser-Busch Agrees to Be Sold to InBev. The New York Times. 2008-07-14.
10. ^ Spain, William; Goldstein, Steve. Anheuser-Busch accepts $52 billion InBev offer. MarketWatch. 2008-07-14.
11. ^ ^{a b c d} Cecil McKithan and Stephen Lissandrello (April, 1978) (PDF), National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Anheuser-Busch Brewery, National Park Service, http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NHLS/Text/66000945.pdf, retrieved 2009-06-22  and Accompanying four photos, from 1895, ca. 1900, 1942, and ca. 1970PDF (1.90 MB)
12. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2008-04-15. http://www.nr.nps.gov/. 
13. ^ ^{a b} "Anheuser-Busch Brewery". National Historic Landmarks Program. National Park Service. http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=715&ResourceType=District. Retrieved 2009-01-20. 
14. ^ Times Online: Stag Brewery to close with loss of 180 jobs
15. ^ ^{a b} Grupo Modelo Appoints Anheuser-Busch as the Importer of its Brands in China, Anheuser-Busch Press Release, 2006. Retrieved 2008-3-24.
16. ^ ^{a b} Anybody Watching Redhook’s Stock…, What's on tap? Newsletter. Retrieved 2008-3-24.
17. ^ A-B收购哈啤99.77%股份 哈啤将申请暂停股份买卖_商业频道
18. ^ Listed at Anheuser-Busch.com under "beer brands"
19. ^ Political Economy Research Institute
20. ^ Anheuser-Busch Environmental, Health & Safety Report
21. ^ "NYS Governor's Awards for Pollution Prevention - Anheuser-Busch". Retrieved May 6, 2008
22. ^ "Anheuser-Busch To Make Green Beer". Retrieved May 6, 2008
23. ^ ^{a b} "Anheuser-Busch Employees Seeing Green" "Corporate Social Responsibility Newswire" April 11, 2008. Retrieved May 6, 2008
24. ^ Anheuser-Busch Environmental Outreach.
25. ^ Barnivore - Your online drink directory
26. ^ Vegetarian beers
27. ^ Anheuser-Busch - Business Units
28. ^ "Anheuser-Busch Wholesalers – Beer Distributors". Anheuser-Busch. http://www.abwholesaler.com/asp/directory/locator.asp. Retrieved 2008-03-07. 
29. ^ ^{a b} "About Hensley". Hensley & Co.. http://www.abwholesaler.com/hensley/AboutUs/AboutUs. Retrieved 2008-03-06. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Anheuser-Busch

• Anheuser-Busch website
• Anheuser-Busch Web Page on the St. Louis Brewery Tour
• Anheuser-Busch Brewery, Broadway & Pestalozzi, Saint Louis, St. Louis City County, MO 3 photos, 2 data pages, at Historic American Building Survey

v • d • e Anheuser-Busch Wholly-Owned Subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev Corporate Officers: Dave Peacock, CEO & President Past CEOs and Presidents: Eberhard Anheuser • Adolphus Busch • August Anheuser Busch, Sr. • Adolphus Busch III • August A. "Gussie" Busch, Jr. • August Busch III • Patrick Stokes Busch Entertainment Corporation Busch Gardens: Africa (Tampa, Florida) • Europe (Williamsburg, Virginia) SeaWorld: San Antonio • San Diego • Orlando Miscellaneous: Aquatica by SeaWorld (Orlando, Florida) • Adventure Island (Tampa, Florida) • Discovery Cove (Orlando, Florida) • Sesame Place (Langhorne, Pennsylvania) • Water Country USA (Williamsburg, Virginia) Anheuser-Busch Products Budweiser • Michelob • Busch Beer • Rolling Rock • Others Subsidiaries Anheuser-Busch, Inc • Anheuser-Busch International, Inc. • Anheuser-Busch Agricultural Operations • St. Louis Refrigerated Car Co. • Manufacturers Railway Co. • Metal Container Corp. • Anheuser-Busch Recycling Corp. • Precision Printing and Packaging, Inc. • Eagle Packaging, Inc. • Longhorn Glass Corp. • Busch Entertainment Corporation • Busch Properties, Inc. Equity Investments Grupo Modelo • Tsingtao Brewery Related Operations Grant's Farm Acquired by InBev November 18, 2008  · Website: www.anheuser-busch.com

v • d • e Principal owners of the St. Louis Cardinals franchise Chris von der Ahe • Frank & Stanley Robison • Helene Hathaway Britton • Sam Breadon • Robert E. Hannegan & Fred Saigh • Fred Saigh • Gussie Busch • Anheuser-Busch • Bill DeWitt, Jr.

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