Stella Artois Launches Global ‘Send A Card, Save A Tree’ Campaign

Stella Artois Asks For Help to Save One Million Atlantic Rainforest Trees This Holiday Season

ST. LOUIS (Dec. 4, 2009) – Stella Artois, the best-selling Belgian beer in the world, is launching a global campaign asking adult consumers to help the Atlantic Rainforest, one of the most endangered habitats in the world.

“Send a Card, Save a Tree” encourages adults around the globe to visit www.stellaartois.com and send a specially created, 3D augmented reality digital holiday card.  In return for every free card that is e-mailed, Stella Artois will secure the future of a rainforest tree located in the threatened Atlantic Rainforest, until the target of one million eCards sent and one million trees saved is reached.

“Stella Artois was originally brewed as a premium beer for the holiday season,” said Ricardo Marques, global marketing manager, Stella Artois.  “This time of year is about giving and we encourage beer lovers to share good wishes with each other for a great cause.”

The Stella Artois eCard uses a new technology called augmented reality, which allows images to spring to 3D life from a seemingly blank surface when viewed through a Web camera.  When recipients print and hold the paper to their Web camera, a stunning interactive seasonal imagery will be revealed before their eyes.

Stella Artois is partnering with World Land Trust, a leading global environmental organization, to purchase and protect more than 1,500 hectares of rainforest.  The Atlantic Rainforest is a top priority for conservationists worldwide and 93 percent of the land already has been lost.”

The one million trees Stella Artois aims to save are located in Argentina’s Misiones Province in a vital land bridge connecting two national parks in neighboring Brazil and Paraguay.  Wildlife in the area includes jaguar, puma, ocelot, lowland tapir, giant otter, more than 500 species of birds and thousands of plant species.

Progress of the campaign will be tracked via a sustainably sourced tree that will light up in stages marking 100,000 trees saved, until the target figure of one million eCards is achieved.  The tree comes from a forest accredited by the Forest Stewardship Council, which ensures the forest the tree is being sourced from is not under threat.  Additionally, for every tree cut down, three more are planted.  The tree is at Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, London and will be available to view remotely via a webcam at www.stellaartois.com.

Stella Artois
Stella Artois is part of a Belgian brewing tradition dating back to 1366.  It is the number one Belgian beer in the world and is available in more than 80 countries.  Stella Artois is a bottom filtered, blonde pilsner.  It is thirst-quenching with a malty middle and crisp finish delivering a full flavor and a hint of bitterness.  Stella Artois should be served in the signature Stella Artois Chalice according to the 9-Step Belgian Pouring Ritual to guarantee a perfect experience of this gold standard lager. 

World Land Trust
The World Land Trust (www.worldlandtrust.org) is a UK registered charity which was established in 1989.  Over the past 20 years it has helped purchase and protect over 400,000 acres of tropical forests and other threatened habitats that would have been lost had they not been able to step in with urgent funding.

The Misiones Atlantic Rainforest
The Atlantic Rainforest of South America, with its high concentration of endemic species at severe risk from habitat destruction, is one of the most threatened rainforests in the world and a top global conservation priority.  The Atlantic Forest originally stretched southward through Uruguay, inland over the Misiones Provence of Argentina and in to Paraguay, covering over 1 million square kilometers.  But over the past 50 years, loss of habitat has accelerated dramatically and the original forests have been reduced to less than 7 percent of their original extent as a result of logging for timber and forest clearance for agriculture and urbanization.  The threats to the remaining Atlantic Forest continue, putting a wealth of biodiversity at risk of extinction.