Audio By Carbonatix
Production of Corona beer is being temporarily suspended in Mexico because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Grupo Modelo, the company that makes the beer, posted the announcement on Twitter, stating that it's halting production and marketing of its beer because the Mexican government has shuttered non-essential businesses.
The Anheuser-Busch Inbev-owned company also makes Modelo and Pacifico beers.
This week, the Mexican government announced the suspension of non-essential activities in the public and private sectors until April 30 in an effort to curb the spread of the virus.
The country has more than 1,500 cases and 50 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins.Grupo Modelo is ready to enact a plan to "guarantee the supply of beer" if the Mexican government decides to include breweries as essential, according to a statement.
Constellation Brands (STZ) handles the distribution and import of Grupo Modelo's beers in the United States. The company said it will discuss the production cessation on a call Friday morning.
Corona's coincidental name with the virus hasn't dented sales. Constellation said sales of its beer brands grew 8.9% for the first three months of this year, with Modelo and Corona being its top sellers.
Corona Hard Seltzer, which launched in early March, is also off to a "strong start," according to a company earnings release.
Beer and other alcohol are rising in sales this month as Americans are being forced to hunker down in light of the coronavirus. Sales numbers from Nielsen (NLSN) show beer sales rose 34% year-over-year for the week ending on March 21.
Latest Stories
-
New York Times executive fatally shot allegedly by elderly in-laws
7 minutes -
Teacher Payment Crisis: GES races to protect academic calendar
16 minutes -
US prosecutors reopen case of alleged gang rape at Cornell University
33 minutes -
Journalist to be crowned king in Uganda after bitter succession dispute
43 minutes -
OpenAI scraps rollout of new model over safety concerns
54 minutes -
GES urges government agencies to end blame game over teacher payments
3 hours -
GES sets Oct. 5 deadline to resolve teachers’ payment dispute
3 hours -
GES working around the clock to get teachers back to class, says Daniel Fenyi
3 hours -
French PM warns against escalation of school protests after 164 arrested
4 hours -
UK tries to stop Trump’s diesel export ban
4 hours -
Late Olise goal gives France win over Belgium
4 hours -
Mancini enjoys first win since return as Italy boss
4 hours -
Interest payments to average a high 20% of government revenue over next 4 years
4 hours -
Anthropic warns AI may pose ‘existential risks to humanity’ in IPO filing
5 hours -
Joe Hart trusts Man City chair Al Mubarak over ruling
5 hours