Anheuser-Busch
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Anheuser-Busch is best known as a major alcohol brewing company including major brands such as Budweiser and Michelob. [1] It also has other major intersets in adventure parks and packaging.
"Anheuser-Busch also has interests in aluminum beverage container recycling, malt production, rice milling, real estate development, turf farming, metalized paper label printing and transportation services," it states on its website. [2]
They are a subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Contents
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Ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council
Anheuser-Busch has been a corporate funder of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and a Member of ALEC's Commerce, Insurance and Economic Development Task Force and ALEC's Tax and Fiscal Policy Task Forces[1][2]. See ALEC Corporations for more.
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ALEC is a corporate bill mill. It is not just a lobby or a front group; it is much more powerful than that. Through ALEC, corporations hand state legislators their wishlists to benefit their bottom line. Corporations fund almost all of ALEC's operations. They pay for a seat on ALEC task forces where corporate lobbyists and special interest reps vote with elected officials to approve “model” bills. Learn more at the Center for Media and Democracy's ALECexposed.org, and check out breaking news on our PRWatch.org site.
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Healthy booze
In October 2005 Advertising Age reported that Anheuser-Busch is considering a new marketing campaign, that "beer is good for you." Busch's Bob Lachky said, "We will work hard to give the platform to independent third-party experts who confirm that moderate drinking of any alcohol can be better than abstinence for most adults."
Beer and wildlife
In 1995, Anheuser-Busch launched a "Budweiser Outdoors" program. According to a company press release, the program seeks to "promote outdoor sports and wildlife conservation," and has seven partner organizations: the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, National Shooting Sports Foundation, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, Quail Unlimited, Delta Waterfowl Foundation and the Quality Deer Management Association. Part of the program is the "Budweiser Conservationist of the Year" award. The 2008 "Budweiser Conservationist of the Year," Lowell E. Baier of Potomac, Maryland, received "a $50,000 grant from Budweiser and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation ... to support conservation efforts," according to a company press release. [3]
Political contributions
August A. Busch III, Chairman of the Executive Committee of Anheuser-Busch, is a Bush Ranger having raised at least $200,000 for Bush in the 2004 election. [4]
The Anheuser-Busch political action committee gave $1,081,374 to federal candidates in the 2006 election - 40% to Democrats, 60% to Republicans. [5]
Lobbying
Anheuser-Busch opposed a bill in Congress in 2005 that would combat underage drinking, yet it claims it is committed to fighting alcohol abuse. They didn't like language in the bill that calls for a ban on alcohol ads during radio and TV broadcasts of college sporting events. Mothers Against Drunk Driving and other public interest groups say that Anheuser-Busch is too focused on making money rather than caring about alcohol-abuse among under age individuals. The company had been active for two years lobbying members of Congress and federal agencies to oppose the bill. [6]
The company spent $3,240,000 for lobbying in 2006. Of this total, $1,274,000 was to outside lobbying firms. Anheuser-Busch has in-house lobbyists also. [7]
Personnel
Key executives with 2006 pay: [8]
- August A. Busch IV, Chief Executive Officer, President, Executive Director, $2,170,000
- W. Randolph Baker, Chief Financial Officer, Vice President, $1,220,000
- Douglas J. Muhleman, Group VP of Brewing Operations & Technology, $1,100,000
- Mark Bobak, Chief Legal Officer, Group Vice President, $1.180,000
- Michael J. Owens, Vice President of Sales & Marketing, $1,000,000
Selected board members: [9]
- August A. Busch III, Chairman of the Executive Committee
- Henry Hugh Shelton, Former Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
- Andrew C. Taylor, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company
- Douglas A. Warner III, Former Chairman of the Board, JPMorgan Chase
- Edward E. Whitacre, Jr., Chairman Emeritus, AT&T
Anheuser-Busch companies
- Anheuser-Busch, Inc.
- Busch Media Group, Inc.
- St. Louis Refrigerator Car Company
- Precision Printing & Packaging, Inc.
- Anheuser-Busch International, Inc.
- Metal Container Corporation
- Busch Entertainment Corporation
- Busch Agricultural Resources, Inc.
- Manufacturers Railway Company
- Anheuser-Busch Recycling Company
- Busch Properties, Inc.
- Eagle Packaging, Inc.
- Longhorn Glass Corporation
Contact information
Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.
One Busch Place,
St. Louis, MO 63118
Phone: (800) 342-5283
Web: http://www.anheuser-busch.com/
References
- ↑ Clearinghouse on Environmental Advocacy and Research, project of the Environmental Working Group, Information on American Legislative Exchange Council, archived organizational profile, archived by Wayback Machine December 2, 2000, accessed August 19, 2011
- ↑ American Legislative Exchange Council, Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee Roster 2, organizational task force membership directory, March 31, 2011, p. 46, obtained and released by Common Cause April 2012
- ↑ Press release, "Wildlife Conservationist to Receive $50,000 Grant from Budweiser and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation," Anheuser-Busch via PR Newswire, February 7, 2008.
- ↑ Pioneers and Rangers, Texans for Public Justice, accessed July 2007.
- ↑ 2006 PAC Summary Data, Open Secrets.
- ↑ "Anheuser-Busch lobbying targets underage drinking bill", USA TODAY, Oct. 10, 2005.
- ↑ Anheuser-Busch lobbying expenses, Open Secrets.
- ↑ Key Executives, Yahoo Finance, accessed July 2007.
- ↑ Board of Directors, Anheuser-Busch, accessed July 2007.
SourceWatch resources
External links
- James B. Arndorfer, "Got Beer? A-B Plots Health Pitch: Brewer looks to buoy struggling suds sales with category-wide push," Advertising Age, October 17, 2005, p. 1.
- "Anheuser-Busch lobbying targets underage drinking bill", USA Today, October 8, 2005.
- "Busch Spreads Lobbying Money Around", St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 10, 2005.
- Press release, "Wildlife Conservationist to Receive $50,000 Grant from Budweiser and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation," Anheuser-Busch via PR Newswire, February 7, 2008.
