Castle Lager is brewed using ingredients from SA. It is also known for uniting us. But currently the nation is in a hunger crisis. We wanted to tell a “quality ingredients” story, meaningfully. We turned the by-product of the beer brewing process (200 000 tonnes discarded) into a flour, and with experts designed a bread recipe higher in nutrition. We used our distribution network to get it to community bakeries across SA – given to those in need. People experienced it through press and Socials, with an increase in brand upliftment, affinity and sales – whilst doing purposeful work.

The brief was to bring the quality ingredients of Castle Lager to life in a meaningful way.

Castle Lager is the largest selling South African beer brand, with all of its raw materials sourced within the borders of the country, creating a high-quality product. After the lautering process, hundreds and thousands of tonnes of spent grain is discarded – a waste product that was measured and still has a lot of nutritional value.

As a brand known for uniting the South African nation, we wanted to unite it in a new way – to use our quality ingredients left behind after the beer brewing process to help another big issue in South Africa: hunger. 55% of South Africans live in poverty, with over 20 million going hungry every day.

To remind South Africans of Castle Lager’s quality ingredients, we turned to the by-product - the waste product left behind after the brewing process which is discarded (over 200 000 tonnes per annum). We milled it into a flour, and designed an innovative recipe with food scientists to turn the flour into a bread product is high in fibre, high in energy and a source of protein. We then used our distribution network, and a partnership with SA Harvest (South Africa’s biggest community food distribution programme) to deliver the flour free to communities in need across South Africa. Using their community bakeries, the flour was made into a high-quality bread, and given to everyone in the area. As the nation’s beer, we called our product Bread of the Nation.

To remind all South Africans over the age of 18 the quality ingredients of Castle Lager beer – grown for over 127 years within the country’s borders, but to so in a meaningful way. SA is in the middle of a hunger-crisis, with over 20 million going hungry. As a brand known for uniting a nation, we wanted to unite South Africans in a different way.

We found communities most in need across South Africa, and used our distribution trucks and a partnership with SA Harvest (SAs largest feeding scheme) to bring flour to community bakeries -where it was baked into a bread high in fibre, energy and protein, given to all the locals in the area in events and activations.

This purpose-led piece was shared far and wide, appealing to all South Africans where the brand received an increase in affinity, brand uplift and sales.

Using nutritionists and food scientists, we developed a recipe using the by-product leftover after the brewing process. It was milled into a flour, and then distributed across South Africa in partnership with SA Harvest (South Africa’s biggest community food distribution programme) Using their community bakeries, the flour was made into a bread high in fibre, energy and a source of protein, and given free to everyone in the area.

We have completed a number of activations throughout South Africa, with a 3-year commitment from SAB to continue doing so.

This on-going initiative has not only shown South Africans the quality of Castle Lager ingredients (with a sales increase and brand upliftment), and become part of ABinBev zero-waste initiative, but has reminded all South Africans of the power we have to use innovation to solve real problems in our country.

To date, we have seen the following results:

A brand uplift of + 9,2%

An increase in brand affinity of over 21%

A Castle Lager beer sales increase of over 6,4% (a big increase for South Africa’s largest beer).

Millions of rands worth of Earned Media.

Huge talk in South Africa by other brands and official acknowledgement of the Bread of the Nation initiative.

A 3 year commitment by ABinBev to continue.

This on-going initiative has not only shown South Africans the quality of Castle Lager ingredients (with a sales increase and brand upliftment), and become part of ABinBev zero-waste initiative, but has reminded all South Africans of the power we have to use innovation to solve real problems in our country.