Anheuser-Busch put its logo on drinking water it packaged in beer-shaped cans (above) which it delivered to Katrina hurricane victims in Budweiser trucks (below)

Hurricane Katrina exacted a huge toll on residents in Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana. After the hurricane, there was another disaster waiting to happen, a perfect storm of calculated gestures of goodwill for the victims of the storm. Intended to serve as "charity" and cast a positive light on the alcohol industry, Anheuser-Busch's charitable efforts took its predatory practices to a new low.

After Hurricane Katrina had passed, storm victims were left without many basic necessities, including fresh water. Enter Anheuser-Busch to act the savior. It rushed to produce nearly 2.5 millions cans of fresh drinking water, packaged in beer-shaped cans that prominently feature the Anheuser-Busch name and logo. The company donated $1 million dollars to the Red Cross and even made its fleet of trucks available to the Red Cross for deliveries of food, supplies, and power generators. Other alcohol industry players, such as the National Alcohol Beverage Control Association, also got in on the act by donating water, goods, or money.

Such generosity might appear to be goodwill and genuine concern for hurricane survivors. In reality, such actions are always designed to serve the long-term interests of the alcohol industry. Creating goodwill by packaging water in Budweiser beer cans-delivered in Budweiser trucks- is just another example of how the alcohol industry exploits vulnerable people to pad its bottom line. This strategy is most apparent in times of disaster, when victims often turn to substances like alcohol to cope with stress. Such demand was plainly obvious in Mississippi, where at least one store was reported to have sold out of beer and cigarettes before milk and chips. According to Sharon Ayers, recently retired Executive Director of the Louisiana Coalition to Prevent Underage Drinking, "Alcohol sales are soaring across the state. Beer was one of the first things that ran out at stores after the storm. But no one is paying attention to it; there's not enough money to adequately deal with alcohol issues in times of crisis."

The alcohol industry showed it true colors in the months following the storm, when local, state, and national lawmakers were focused on caring for survivors and rebuilding destroyed communities. The industry began working to roll back state and local alcohol regulations, for example trying to give special tax breaks to local liquor stores and other businesses in hurricane-affected areas. Hurricane area residents were fortunate that the industry's pockets didn't go deep enough to buy off legislators on this issue. But the alcohol industry's power was reflected in the comments of one Congressman who voted against them, but was nonetheless careful to explain that his position was "due to his opposition to gambling, not any animus towards Anheuser-Busch."

Although corporate charity during a disaster is not new, what is troubling is the way the alcohol industry has used a disaster of this magnitude to advance its own agenda. Anheuser-Busch and other big alcohol companies should be reminded that true charity is about giving to those less fortunate-even without recognition-not benefiting from them.