Reinventing how we drink: how we celebrated Global Beer Responsible Day this year at AB InBev

We couldn’t meet in person, but that didn’t stop us.

Every year in September, AB InBev celebrates Global Beer Responsible Day, a symbolic celebration of our commitment to fostering a culture of smart drinking with our consumers, and making sure that every experience they have with beer is a positive one. Because of COVID-19, we were forced to take this year’s event online through a company webcast to discuss how we will continue furthering our Global Smart Drinking Goals.

Change starts from within, which is why we believe all our colleagues need to be aware of our company values and beliefs; providing them with the knowledge they need to implement said goals in their day to day activities and become Smart Drinking champions. This year, we explored the different initiatives done over the past few years through a series of panels and debates that encouraged feedback, ideas, and best practices to keep fulfilling our purpose. In a nutshell, here are the six key pillars we discussed and what they mean to us at AB InBev.

1. Marketing to change social norms:  Smart marketing can have a profound impact on consumers when done correctly, which is why we will invest at least 1 billion USD across our markets by 2025 in dedicated social marketing campaigns that influence social norms and consumer behavior. A great example this year, was Cerveza Aguila’s partnership with restaurants, rideshare services, and others to promote ways that consumers can ‘live responsibly’ when drinking! If you haven’t, check it out: https://youtu.be/f2rxNKnaNf8
2. Unleashing the power of NABLABs: It’s a goal of ours at AB InBev to ensure that low- or no-alcohol beer products make up at least 20% of our global beer volume by 2025. We strive for existing consumers to integrate no-alcohol beers and beer with 3.5% ABV or lower into what they choose to consume, thus, lowering their total alcohol intake. Recently, a study by scientific experts and published by Oxford University Press, showed that decreasing the mean ABV of alcohol may lead to a decrease in harmful drinking behaviors, using our work as an example for the study.
3. Partnering for community impact: Evidence-based solutions should be at the heart of any global initiative that seeks to drive change. Throughout our city pilots in Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Belgium, and the United States, we’ve been able to test and rigorously measure several interventions and partnerships.
4. Marketing, Advertising, and Sales: None of our products are released into the market unless they abide by our Responsible Marketing and Communications Code. We strive to make sure that our communications are honest, transparent, sensitive with cultural differences, and always in good taste.
5. Disrupting harmful drinking: What we do, and the way we conduct our business makes a difference. We are committed to consistently and thoroughly engaging with public health experts so we can join efforts to mitigate and reduce the harmful drinking globally.
6. Voluntary labeling for all products: An educated consumer is a responsible consumer. Improving alcohol literacy has, and always will be necessary for us. Because of this, we have committed to placing a guidance label on all of our beer products in countries without substantive labeling legislation by the end of 2020.

In short, Global Beer Responsible Day is, and should be every day for us, and for any beer lover. Understanding the impact of harmful use of alcohol can, and will most certainly bring about the change we seek to accomplish as a company. Despite having to commemorate this year’s event online, we invite you all to celebrate it whenever you choose to enjoy a beer.

#TogetherForBetter

#TogetherAtADistance

All my best,

Cata