AB InBev is adding calorie counts to Bud Light’s packaging

AB InBev has added prominent nutritional information to its popular lager Bud Light, making it the first beer brand in the US to do so.

(Photo: AB InBev)

Bud Light, which contains 110 calories, and 6.6g of carbs and 0.9g of protein per 12 oz, will feature standard white nutritional info and ingredients on its packaging in the off-trade from February this year.

Despite being the leading beer brand in the states, sales of Bud Light have fallen by nearly US$2 billion (£1.56 billion) since 2016, according to analysis by Bloomberg.

Although nutritional labelling is compulsory for food products, alcohol companies are not required by law to list calorie counts or ingredients, but Bud Light’s VVP of marketing, Andy Goeler, said that US consumers “deserve to know more about their beer.”

“When people walk through a store, they are used to seeing ingredient labels on products in every aisle, except for the beer, wine and spirits aisle. As the lead brand in the category, we believe increasing on-pack transparency will benefit the entire beer category and provide our consumers with the information they expect to see.”

AB InBev, which first launched Bud Light in the US in 1982, pledged to ramp up the nutritional and calorie information on its beer packaging back in 2016.

It follows in the footsteps of rival drinks giant Diageo, which added nutritional and calorie information to packs of 500ml cans of Guinness in the Republic of Ireland in 2017, taking a further step toward fulfilling a pledge made in 2015 to provide such information for all of its products.

In addition to listing the ingredients, the packaging will also include: serving size, calories, total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, carbohydrates, sugars and protein.