Anheuser-Busch has awarded more than US$200,000 in grants for rice research, grower education and industry partnerships, timed for National Rice Month in September and aimed largely at the Arkansas growers who supply the grain for its flagship beers.

The largest share, US$130,000, goes to the University of Arkansas for work on rice quality, brewing applications and long-term crop management. Arkansas State University's Rice Program receives US$10,000 to develop resilient, high-yielding production systems and share the results with growers. USA Rice gets US$50,000 for initiatives to widen opportunities for rice farmers and strengthen rice-growing communities, and Ducks Unlimited US$15,000 to produce farmer-facing material on rice production practices and the support available through the US Department of Agriculture.

The company describes itself as the nation's largest end user of rice, which goes into Budweiser, Bud Light and Michelob Ultra. It says it buys nearly all its agricultural ingredients from US growers, spending about US$700 million a year, through a network of more than 700 farmers that includes more than 80 rice growers in Arkansas, the leading rice-producing state.

"Great beer starts with great ingredients, and great ingredients start with farmers," said Damola Oshin, the company's chief procurement officer. Seth Watkins, an Arkansas rice farmer who works with the brewer, said research funded in the state "helps farmers like me improve how we grow, identify what works best for our farms, and continue producing high-quality rice for years to come".

In 2024 Anheuser-Busch became the first company to carry American Farmland Trust's U.S. Farmed certification and packaging seal, which applies to products drawing at least 95 per cent of their agricultural ingredients from US farms; certification carries a US$5,000 annual fee plus a licensing contribution scaled to sales. The brewer will also take its 10-ton travelling ComBar — part combine, part taproom — to Arkansas in November as a tribute to the growers behind its beers.

AGDAILY says the article was prepared with automated tools and human research and verified by its editorial team.

Photo: Anheuser-Busch, via AGDAILY

Source: AGDAILY