The One Show
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Category
Innovation & Transformation / Innovation in Public Relations
Annual ID
OS_PR21_088M
About the Work
Even though 90% of Americans want to buy organic food and drinks, less than 1% of America’s farmland is organic, a shocking reality that’s jeopardizing our health and environment. The reason? Going organic takes three extremely difficult years, an impossible challenge for struggling family farms.
With insufficient government support for transitioning farmers, Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold, America’s most popular organic beer, and a leader in the organic space, has taken on the mission to transform America’s agriculture with Contract for Change: a revolutionary agreement between brands and farmers that solves the three main challenges that are stopping farmers from converting their conventional farms to organic farms: no guaranteed buyers, reduced yields (and therefore, reduced profits), and lack of training.
Contract for Change was offered to all American farmers through a hyper-targeted and hyper-local media campaign, followed by PR outreach that led to national coverage from major agricultural and mainstream press such as Organic Insider, Green America, Business Insider and Forbes. Anheuser-Busch also used the contract to engage with its current conventional farmers through its agronomist team. The campaign helped change the perception of organic farming and the attainability of the transition within the farming community.
To date, 175 farmers have signed the contract and 104,000 acres are currently in transition. Once those fields become organic, they’ll produce ingredients for Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold and hundreds of other organic brands.
Contract for Change was created in partnership with the Organic Trade Association, California Certified Organic Farmers, the Idaho Barley Commission, and the United States Department of Agriculture. It plays a crucial role in Anheuser-Busch’s contribution to the United Nations’ sustainability goals, and will be offered for years to come, helping secure the future of America’s organic farmland.
With insufficient government support for transitioning farmers, Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold, America’s most popular organic beer, and a leader in the organic space, has taken on the mission to transform America’s agriculture with Contract for Change: a revolutionary agreement between brands and farmers that solves the three main challenges that are stopping farmers from converting their conventional farms to organic farms: no guaranteed buyers, reduced yields (and therefore, reduced profits), and lack of training.
Contract for Change was offered to all American farmers through a hyper-targeted and hyper-local media campaign, followed by PR outreach that led to national coverage from major agricultural and mainstream press such as Organic Insider, Green America, Business Insider and Forbes. Anheuser-Busch also used the contract to engage with its current conventional farmers through its agronomist team. The campaign helped change the perception of organic farming and the attainability of the transition within the farming community.
To date, 175 farmers have signed the contract and 104,000 acres are currently in transition. Once those fields become organic, they’ll produce ingredients for Michelob ULTRA Pure Gold and hundreds of other organic brands.
Contract for Change was created in partnership with the Organic Trade Association, California Certified Organic Farmers, the Idaho Barley Commission, and the United States Department of Agriculture. It plays a crucial role in Anheuser-Busch’s contribution to the United Nations’ sustainability goals, and will be offered for years to come, helping secure the future of America’s organic farmland.
2021 Awards
Total Points: 3
Merit
Credits
Agency
FCB / Chicago
FCB / New York
Post Production Company
Lord + Thomas / Chicago
Myles Beeson / Chicago
Chief Creative Officer
Andrés Ordóñez
Fred Levron
Gabriel Schmitt
Chief Strategy Officer
John Kenny
Creative Director
Niels Sienaert
Tim Schoenmaeckers
Peter Carnavale
Director of Photography
Myles Beeson
Editor
Cameron Yergler
Executive Creative Director
John Bleeden
Executive Producer
Ximena Aguirre
Photographer
Steven Piper
Chief Creative Officer (Former)
Liz Taylor
Senior Art Director
Marcus McCoy
Senior Producer
Carolina Velez
VP, Creative Director
Marianna Ruiz
Account Supervisor
Michael Fox
Audio Engineer
Batsirayi Zesaguli
Director, Project Management
Kristin Oberg
EVP, Director of Production NA
Kerry Hill
EVP, Group Management Director
Antoniette Wico
Production Business Manager
Steve Armstead
Senior Broadcast Business Manager
Ellen Kuratnik
Senior Post Producer
Alex Bartczak
Senior Strategic Planner
Melissa Jackson
Studio Manager
Drew Beeson
SVP, Director of Strategic Planning
Thomas Hehir
Talent Manager
Trish Gregor
Traffic Manager
Mary Beth Patton
VP, Analytics Director
Paul Bierzychudek
VP, Director of Audio
Jason Ryan
VP, Director of Production
Joe Tipre
VP, Management Director
Bianca Marcus
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