Anheuser-Busch has announced a donation of $1 million to the American Red Cross’ Annual Disaster Giving Program to help ensure the Red Cross can take immediate action for communities in need.
As a member of the Annual Disaster Giving Program, Anheuser-Busch pledges donations on an ongoing basis in advance of disasters to help ensure the Red Cross can act quickly when disasters strike.
“We are all inspired by the work that the American Red Cross does and are humbled to play a small part in their relief efforts around the country through this donation and our efforts to provide clean, safe drinking water to communities in need,” João Castro Neves, President and CEO of Anheuser-Busch said on Friday.
The announcement of this year’s donation comes as Hurricane Harvey has devastated many Gulf Coast communities. Anheuser-Busch responded to the American Red Cross’s urgent request for emergency drinking water by sending 11 truckloads – or over 560,000 cans – of clean, safe drinking water to affected communities in Texas and Louisiana.
Most recently, three additional truckloads are being sent to Beaumont, which has suffered severe shortages of clean water after Hurricane Harvey caused major disruption to the area’s water supply, including its essential health services.
Anheuser-Busch’s Cartersville Brewery in Georgia periodically pauses beer production to produce canned water so as to be ready to act quickly when disasters strike. The company will pause beer production on Monday, September 4, to produce additional drinking water to help meet the ongoing needs of communities hit by Hurricane Harvey.
Anheuser-Busch has a long and proud partnership with the American Red Cross, beginning in 1906 when Adolphus Busch made a donation to aid victims of the San Francisco earthquake. Over a century later, the partnership continues stronger than ever, as part of the Anheuser-Busch’s commitment to helping American communities in times of need.
As part of that partnership, Anheuser-Busch provides water and supplies to those affected by natural disasters nationwide. In 2016, Anheuser-Busch produced and shipped emergency drinking water to communities hit by natural disasters, including the California wildfires, the Louisiana floods and Hurricane Matthew. Since 1988, the St. Louis-based brewer has provided over 76 million cans of drinking water to aid disaster-stricken areas.
Help people affected by disasters like storms and countless other crises by making a gift to American Red Cross Disaster Relief. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small.
ABOUT ANHEUSER-BUSCH
For more than 160 years, Anheuser-Busch and its world-class brewmasters have carried on a legacy of brewing America’s most popular beers. Starting with the finest ingredients sourced from Anheuser-Busch’s family of growers, every batch is crafted using the same exacting standards and time-honored traditions passed down through generations of proud Anheuser-Busch brewmasters and employees. Anheuser-Busch owns and operates 21 breweries, 21 distributorships and 22 agricultural and packaging facilities, employing more than 17,000 people across the United States.
ABOUT THE AMERICAN RED CROSS
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or cruzrojaamericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.