Bud Light boycott over trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney hits beer giant's sales

The owner of Bud Light took a hit to its sales after a US boycott of the brand sparked by its work with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

Brewing giant AB Inbev said sales in the US fell more than 10% this spring, as demand for Bud Light lager plunged.

The brand faced a wave of attacks after it sent a personalised can of beer to Ms Mulvaney for an online post.

However, Belgium-based AB Inbev said performance overall was better than many analysts had expected.

Outside of the US, Budweiser sales jumped nearly 17% compared with last year.

AB Inbev - whose other brands include Stella Artois and Leffe - makes about a quarter of all beer sold globally and continues to claim more than a third of the market in the US.

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In its update to investors on Thursday, it said its share of the US market has dropped more than 5% since last year.

It is showing few signs of recovery since April, when the Bud Light controversy reached its peak.

Following Ms Mulvaney's social media post promoting the beer with her personalised can, many on the right criticised the company for going "woke".

Woke is an informal term from the US, meaning alert to injustice and discrimination in society, particularly racism and sexism. It is often used by the right in a derogatory way towards left-leaning views on topics from climate change to support for minorities.

Musician Kid Rock, NFL player Trae Waynes and model Bri Teresi all shared videos of themselves shooting Bud Light cans.

The company's response to the criticism - which included putting two executives blamed for the relationship on leave - was subsequently decried by many on the left.

Lost top spot

Within weeks, industry analysts reported that Modelo - sold in the US by a rival firm - had replaced Bud Light as the top-selling beer in the US, and rivals such as Coors Light and Miller Light were gaining fast.

The parent company of those beers, Molson-Coors, reported its best US sales since the two firms merged in 2005 this week.

Ab Inbev said its own internal data showed about 80% of consumers in the US remain favourable or neutral toward the Bud Light brand.

But its recovery efforts - including an advertising blitz and support for stores and distributors - weighed heavily on the firm's core profits in the US, which dropped more than 28% in the quarter.

The company earlier this month said it was cutting about 2% of its US workforce.

Overall Ab Inbev performed better than many analysts expected.

It said global revenue rose 7.2% year-on-year in the April-June period to $15.1bn, as higher prices and growth in China made up for the decline in sales volume in the US.

The company said its underlying profits dipped only about 1% year-on-year and stood by its full-year forecast.