by Rebecca Greenfield

Bud Light’s Super Bowl campaign is calling out competitors that use corn syrup -- and the corn lobby is not happy about it.

In Anheuser-Busch InBev’s ads, a medieval crew delivers a cask of unwanted corn syrup to Miller Lite and Coors Light. Bud Light is using the “brewed with no corn syrup” on its ads for the night.

Following the spots, the National Corn Growers Association tweeted at Bud Light that “America’s corn farmers are disappointed in you. Our office is right down the road! We would love to discuss with you the many benefits of corn! Thanks @MillerLight and @CoorsLite for supporting our industry.”

Anheuser-Busch said it “fully supports” corn growers and will continue to invest in the industry.

“Bud Light’s Super Bowl commercials are only meant to point out a key difference in Bud Light from some other light beers,” it said in a statement.

American consumption of high fructose corn syrup started to fall at the beginning of the millennium when it was linked to the country’s high rate of obesity. This was due in part to decreasing consumption of soda; soft drink makers have also moved away from corn syrup, replacing it with sugar.

Much of the reaction on social media to the Bud Light ads suggests most people didn’t know beer contained corn syrup at all. Perhaps the corn lobby wanted to keep it that way.

Related:Bud Light ad lights up Twitter

To contact the reporter on this story: Rebecca Greenfield in New York at [email protected]

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at [email protected]

Jeff Sutherland

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