Corona will halt beer production, but it’s not because of confusion with coronavirus

Grupo Modelo, which makes Corona and other beer, will temporarily stop production due to the coronavirus pandemic, the company announced Thursday.

It will no longer be able to produce its beer after its business activities were deemed non-essential by the Mexico government, Grupo Modelo said.

Production will halt Sunday, it said in a press release. Grupo Modelo also makes Pacifico and Modelo beers.

Mexico declared a national health emergency earlier this week. While agriculture and food production were considered essential, beer production was not, according to Reuters.

“If the federal government considers it appropriate to issue some clarification confirming beer as an agro-industrial product, at Grupo Modelo we are ready to execute a plan with more than 75 percent of our staff working from home and at the same time guaranteeing the supply of beer,” Grupo Modelo said, according to Reuters.

Corona beer was the punchline of many jokes when the outbreak started in January and February. Search traffic for “Corona beer virus” rose significantly as coronavirus began to spread across the world.

It also led to sharp decrease in sales for AB InBev, which owns Grupo Modelo. The brewer lost $170 million in profits during January and February, according to FoodBev.com.

But as shutdowns began and people were more inclined to buy beer from stores, sales began to increase. Sales for Corona beer were up 50 percent in late March, Nielsen data shows, according to AdAge.com.

Grupo Modelo has eight plants throughout Mexico making 46 different beers, according to to UPI.

There are more than 1,500 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Mexico, including 50 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

This story was originally published April 3, 2020 at 6:50 AM.