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COLUMBIA, MO. -- Last fall Budweiser introduced the fan can and just as quickly they stopped production. 

Colleges across the nation thought dressing Bud Light Beer in school colors sent the wrong message and targeted underage students.

University of Missouri researchers found students actually felt beer was safer to drink when it was packaged in black and gold fan cans.

"Individuals who had been exposed to Budweiser in the fan can clad in mu's colors thought it was less dangerous to drink beer," post-doctoral fellow, Chris Loersch said.

Loersch says people tend to feel a sense of trust and safety within their own group and that's why they felt safer drinking the fan can beer.

"We found in a third study that people actually kind of rated the local party scene as safer, saying that less people are drugged without their knowledge, that people drink less and that people are less often sexually assaulted after being exposed to that Budweiser fan can than as opposed to the regular can," Loersch said.

However, some we talked to were skeptical about the study.

"The alcohol amount is the same in each one,” MU student Joe Cofflin said. “Just a little color coding difference."

The majority felt they were supporting the tigers with the black and gold cans.

"I feel better with it because I feel like I am supporting the school,” MU fan Matt Brown said.

"I want to represent Columbia and everyone else around here so instead of just using a plain blue and silver can, why not represent and use a black and gold can," Cofflin said.

"You'll be more drawn to and more trusting to products that are associated with the groups you belong to," Loersch said.

The fan cans have been removed from the shelves of stores near college campuses.