Behind the Brew is a column where Molson Coors employees explain in their own words what’s new in their department and how it’s driving the company forward. Alison Hanrahan is a Community Affairs Manager based in Milwaukee.
At Molson Coors, we’re in the business of bringing people together. For decades, people have come together over a tasty Miller Lite or an ice-cold Coors Light. They’ve raised a Blue Moon at the ballpark or reminisced over a Miller High Life with friends, new and old. And more recently, we’ve added non-alc options to our portfolio like Fever Tree, Naked Life, and Peroni 0.0, to bring greater choice in these moments of connection.
But no matter the moment, no matter the beverage, and no matter the time of year – Dry January or other – encouraging moderation and smart alcohol consumption is core to what we do as a company and it’s core to what our Community Affairs team does day to day.
Our business is so interconnected with our communities that elevating responsibility is a shared responsibility, and our initiatives help ensure we’re good stewards to our consumers and neighbors.
Alcohol Responsibility in Action
What’s exciting about our industry is that our products show up in moments people are passionate about – occasions where they break their routines and do what they love. That gives us a blueprint for where to meet them and actively promote the smart consumption of our products.
Our team has three main focus areas: prevention, harm reduction, and safety. All three coalesce as we build the plans that show up for consumers.
A perfect example is holiday festivities – that’s where our Free Rides program was born. What started nearly 40 years ago has expanded to provide nearly 10 million rides to mitigate the risk of anyone driving under the influence after they celebrate.
We’re always identifying different moments and partners – whether that’s a golf tournament, music festival, or local sporting event – where we can encourage smart consumption. Just this past New Year’s Eve, we sponsored rides in seven cities across the country.
Another area of focus for us is rooted in education – and that’s particularly important when you think about college campuses. One way we do that is through our work with the International Town and Gown Association, supporting education and harm reduction on college campuses. We offer funding for universities to curate programs on campus for alcohol education and safety, and the universities use the grant to design the program in a way that reaches their specific student bodies the best.
We’ve seen universities implement their programs in unique ways to drive the most impact. From Arizona State’s program that empowers student athletes on campus as leaders and ambassadors in the responsibility space, to Marquette’s Red Watch Band bystander intervention program that trains nearly all incoming students to recognize and respond to emergencies, the unique programs tailored campus to campus help make it so effective. Since 2012, we’ve provided 175 grants and donated more than $2 million to the cause.
Another organization we partner with is Team Coalition. Whether it’s a playoff baseball game or the opening night of a rodeo, the work supports venues and concessions with training and education to ensure staff is serving responsibly, following regulations, and protecting consumers. Team Coalition works with several industry leaders to train over 40,000 employees staffing 142 sports and entertainment venues, and manages a digital pledge program to prevent fans from driving under the influence of alcohol. Our involvement is just another way that we take our role as a responsible alcohol supplier seriously, and use it to support the customers and consumers we serve.
This is just a small snapshot into our commitment. We know our brands are at the center of many celebrations – and that's something we’re proud of. But just as important is how we show up as stewards to the communities.
Being part of those special moments of connection, championing moderation and helping to elevate those moments with responsibility at the center – underpins everything we do.