Bud Light sales have plummeted so much that two glass bottling plants are FORCED to cut production

Bud Lights sales have plummeted so badly that a glass bottling company was forced to close all its plants and lay off nearly 650 employees.

The Ardagh Group, one of the world’s largest glass producers, announced last week that it would close its Wilson, North Carolina, and Simsboro, Louisiana plants on July 17. The Wilson plant employed almost 400 people and the Simsboro plant had 245, all of whom are now out of work.

The company did not cite the reason for the closures in its statement, saying only that it was part of a “multi-year performance optimization program.”

But an investigation of WRAL discovered that Ardagh was forced to close the plants due to declining sales from Bud Light, one of its main contractors.

The once-beer giant has lost its reputation as America’s best-selling beer amid a boycott by leftists and conservatives over its association with controversial transgender TikToker Dylan Mulvaney in April.

Mulvaney, 26, recently criticized the company for not supporting her amid backlash to her March Madness ad, prompting the beer company to double down on its support for the LGBTQIA community.

The Simsboro, Louisiana plant (pictured) would also close on July 17, leaving about 245 people out of work.

An internal memo obtained by WRAL cites declining sales with Anheuser-InBev, the parent company of Bud Light.

Workers at bottling plants in North Carolina and Louisiana have said they have faced slowing production since Mulvaney’s announcement was posted online in early April.

Both plants were forced to take some of their machines offline amid declining demand, which “of course, was pointing towards the Bud Light situation,” James Munhall, a Journeyman Machine Repair Mechanic, told WRAL.

By May 18, according to an internal memo obtained by the local news station, company executives said they would close the two plants “due to poor sales with Anheuser-InBev,” the parent company of Budweiser and Bud Light.

Longtime employees explained that most of their business was making bottles for Budweiser and Bud Light.

They said that at a meeting at the North Carolina plant last week, the plant manager told them the boycott was forcing them to close.

“Because Budweiser was no longer selling the bottle, they no longer needed our product,” David Williams, a machine repair mechanic, told WRAL.

The beer brand saw sales fall 28.5 percent in the week ending June 17, one of the worst weeks since the campaign aired in April.

It’s the deepest drop since the week ending June 10, which saw a 26.8 percent drop, according to Bump Williams Consulting and NielsenIQ.

The new low tops the previous worst, a drop of nearly 26 percent, for the week ending May 25.

David Williams, a machine repair mechanic, told WRAL that the plant was closing because Budweiser can no longer sell its products.

Longtime employees explained that most of their business was making bottles for Budweiser and Bud Light.

The beer brand saw sales fall 28.5 percent in the week ending June 17, one of the worst weeks since the campaign aired in April.

Those declining sales figures apparently exacerbated current supply chain problems at glass factories.

In a February sales call, Ardagh, which is based in Luxembourg, announced that North America saw a 9 percent drop in shipments and falling revenue.

And when it announced the closures last week, the company simply said: “Our multi-year performance optimization program, which involves targeted investments in enhanced capacity and continued cost optimization, supports our ability to continue to provide current and potential customers with high-quality, American-made products.” sustainable glass containers.’

He added that existing customers will continue to be served from alternative locations on the network, according to the Ruston leading.

Meanwhile, employees at the Wilson plant say their union is negotiating a severance package as they struggle to find another high-paying union job.

Many said it was their second plant closed by Ardagh in the last decade.

“They are descendants of the family that also worked in the industry,” Munhall said.

“You’re not just killing an employee’s job, you’re killing their family, their chances of sending their kids to college.”

DailyMail.com has contacted the Ardagh Group for comment.

TikToker Dylan Mulvaney, 26, says she teamed up with Bud Light for a March Madness ad to celebrate her first full year as a transgender woman

The controversial announcement forced a nationwide boycott of the once best-selling beer.

Anheuser-Busch executives previously said ongoing boycotts of Bud Light have hurt frontline workers and wholesalers as conservatives stopped buying the beer after Mulvaney’s announcement.

She said in the video that she was partnering with the brewer on a campaign to support her first full year as a transgender woman, but Anheuser-Busch executives have since denied there was any partnership after originally saying it was a brainchild. from an external advertising agency.

Speaking last week for the first time since the disastrous ad ran, Mulvaney criticized the company for not supporting her.

“I was waiting for the brand to contact me, but they never did,” she said, stating, “I’ve been afraid to leave my house.”

“For a company to hire a trans person and then not publicly support them is worse than not hiring a trans person at all.”

He said he once “loved” Bud Light, noting that trans and queer people are “customers” too.

But he said “turning a blind eye” is not an option.

Mulvaney also admitted to hiding a can with his face on it, causing Kid Rock to shoot several cases of beer, and he can no longer find it.

Mulvaney said: “I realized I needed to protect this can so I hid it somewhere and I can’t find it because I hid it so well.”

“But when I find it, I feel like it needs to go to a museum, preferably behind bulletproof glass.

“One thing I won’t stand for people saying about me is that I don’t like beer because I love beer and always have.”

Mulvaney spoke for the first time last week since the ad aired, criticizing Anheuser Busch for not standing up for her afterwards.

She claimed she was “afraid to leave my house” and insisted that the brewer approached her for a partnership.

Mulvaney also said in the video that he hid a can with his face on it and can no longer find it.

Anheuser-Busch later released a statement saying it is “committed to the programs and partnerships” they have forged with the LGBTQ+ community.

In the statement, they said: ‘The privacy and security of our employees and our partners is always our top priority.

“As we move forward, we will focus on what we do best: making great beer for everyone and earning our place in the moments that matter to our consumers.”

It came just days after chief executive Brendan Whitworth came under fire for refusing to rule out whether the company would partner with Mulvaney again, and tohe avoided answering how much the marketing mistake had cost Bud Light.

speaking to CBS MorningsWhitworth was asked if he would send Mulvaney another can, knowing the backlash it provoked.

But instead of giving a definitive answer, the CEO launched into a pre-rehearsed speech about the “social conversation” the disaster campaign sparked.

Whitworth added that they “need to deeply understand the consumer” and “appreciate” what they want “from the brand, as he was criticized on social media for doing a “terrible job”.

He was then challenged for his refusal to answer, with Tony Dokoupil asking if the decision was a mistake, but he again dodged the question.