Corona Beer Maker Suspends Brewing Over Virus

The Mexican brewer of Corona beer has on Thursday, April 2, announced suspending its production over the COVID-19 health crisis in the country over the pandemic.

Grupo Modelo, whose brands also include Pacifico and Modelo, said the measure was in line with the Mexican government’s instruction to halt all non-essential activities until April 30 to curb the spread of coronavirus.

“We are in the process of lowering production at our plants to the bare minimum,” the company said in a statement, adding it would progressively suspend production in the coming days.

Only key sectors such as agribusiness will be able to continue to function, said Mexico’s government.

Should the Mexican government agree, Grupo Modelo said it was ready to operate with 75 percent of its staff working remotely to guarantee the supply of beer.

Since the wake of the virus crisis, Corona beer has been the punchline of jokes and memes, and an online rumor said sales in the US dropped by around 40 percent after the outbreak.

However, in late February, Constellation Brands, which owns the Corona label, denied the rumor and said sales had stayed strong in the US even as the virus has spread internationally.