Belgians Eye $46B Anheuser-Busch Takeover

New beer comes amid slumping sales for Anheuser-Busch

(NEWSER) - Tastes great, less filling, and more intoxicating? Anheuser-Busch is rolling out what the LA Times calls a "long-germinating beer concept" that it hopes is all that and a bag of chips. Dubbed Bud Light Platinum, the beer will have a robust 6% alcohol by volume, 137 calories, and an eye clearly on the burgeoning craft beer industry. Regular Bud Light has 4.2% ABV and 110 calories, while Bud sports 5% and 145 calories. More»

Chinese brand has been the top brew for three years

(NEWSER) - For the past three years, the biggest-selling beer in the world was a brew you've probably never heard of: China's Snow Beer, reports the Telegraph . And with the Chinese beer market surging by 10% a year, expect Snow to grow even bigger. Though not as well known as Tsingtao, Snow has grown by buying up breweries all over China since it was formed in 1993 in a joint venture between SABMiller and China Resources. Last year, Snow sold 16.5 billion pints, about twice as much as former No. 1 seller Bud Light. More»

(NEWSER) - The nation’s largest brewers plan to raise beer prices in the fall, the Wall Street Journal reports. Anheuser-Busch InBev—maker of Budweiser—and MillerCoors will further test the notion that beer is generally recession-proof. “The environment is very favorable, we think,” says an Anheuser exec. Both companies have been able to offset sales slumps by raising prices in the last year. More»

(NEWSER) - Bud Light is rolling out cans in the colors of the nation's big colleges just in time for football season—and that has some schools fuming, the Wall Street Journal reports. Colleges worried about binge drinking think they'll be seen as sponsors of the “Fan Cans” campaign, which boasts 27 different color schemes and begins this month. “Show your true colors with Bud Light,” says the campaign, adding that the cans are "made for gameday." More»

Jobs, perks, executive suites disappear

(NEWSER) - Things haven't tasted the same since InBev's takeover—and makeover—of Anheuser-Busch, the Wall Street Journal reports. Cost-cutting has become paramount at a firm once known for its cushy treatment of employees. Jobs have been sliced, executive suites knocked down, and benefits like free baseball tickets made rare. Anheuser-Busch Inbev “is like a start-up,” says the firm’s US boss. “That excites some people and turns off others.” More»