• by Fern Siegel , March 7, 2023

Miller Lite is changing its approach to women.

First, by acknowledging that women were among the first beer brewers in history — a fact many companies ignored.

And second, by making amends for using women as sexual objects to sell a product, often in demeaning ways. That’s where the “Bad $#!T to Good $#!T” effort, which is literal, comes in.

Miller Life will turn its old sexist beer print ads, displays and posters into fertilizer — and give it to more than 200 female brewers to make approximately 330,000 beers. The brand partnered with actor-producer Ilana Glazer (“Broad City”) to star in an ad underscoring the brewer’s intentions.

The Alma agency is handled the creative work.

“This Women’s History Month, Miller Lite wanted to recognize that without women, there would be no beer,” said Elizabeth Hitch, senior director of marketing for Miller Lite. “To honor this, we wanted to acknowledge the missteps in representation of women in beer advertising by cleaning up not just our $#!T, but the whole industry’s $#!T, while benefiting the future of women and beer.”

Miller Lite will also donate over five times the amount it spends to buy back the bad $#!T to the Pink Boots Society to support women in advancing their careers in the brewing industry.

“After years of treating women like objects, the beer industry has an opportunity to shed more light on just how powerful women's contribution has been,” said Glazer. “I'm inspired Miller Lite created the space for this reflection, and I’m proud to play a part in repping this step in the right direction.”

Last year, Molson Coors celebrated the Fourth of Julyby not recognizing America’s founding fathers, but by putting Mary Lisle, the country’s first-recorded woman brewer on its packaging and donating $5 for every case of Miller Lite sold to the Pink Boots Society.
In 2021, the brewer launched the Miller Lite Level Up Fund, a $100,000 grant program specifically for women gamers on streaming platforms like Twitch.

"We believe people of all genders should be welcome at the bar, and we have a role in making sure that remains true," said a Molson Coors spokesperson.

Consumers can also pitch in. The site www.millerlite.com/badsht2goodsht explains how they can contribute to the movement.

“This year, we're going further in our commitment to supporting the women who love beer and the women who brew beer, helping them make their own mark in history…and their own good $#!T,” said Hitch.