MillerCoors has escalated the dispute with AB InBev over its controversial TV commercials and is sueing Anheuser Busch (AB) for false advertising and trademark dilution. The second largest U.S. brewing company asks for barring of AB’s misleading ads and damage claims.
MillerCoors states that the controversial commercials of its rival, which were aired in a USD13 million campaign during Super Bowl (inside.beer, 5.2.2019), were misleading because consumers could get the impression that by drinking Coors Light and Miller Lite beers they were consuming high-fructose corn syrup, an artificial sweetener which is said to foster obesity.
“To be clear, they will not,” MillerCoors said in a federal complaint, referring to the fact that MillerCoors is using fructose corn syrup and not high-fructose corn syrup and any type of sugar is converted during the fermentation process to alcohol. Therefore hardly any high-fructose nor fructose remains in the final product.
Furthermore, MillerCoors claims that AB itself uses corn syrup to help fermentation in upscale brands such as Stella Artois Cidre and Bon & Viv Spiked Seltzer, and in economy brands such as Busch and Busch Light.
“The recent Bud Light campaign is truthful and intended to point out a key difference from Miller Lite and Coors Light,” said Gemma Hart, Vice President of Communications at Anheuser-Busch. “Those beers are brewed with corn syrup; Bud Light is not.”
