Constellation Brands (CB) will build a new brewery in in the southeast of Mexico. The news was announced by Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador during his regular morning news conference yesterday. One year ago, the construction of CB’s 10 million hl brewery in Mexicali, a Mexican border town to the USA, was stopped after the authorities held a public vote in which the majority of voters voted against the completion of the brewery which was at that time already by almost 70% completed. (inside.beer, 24.03.2020)
Despite the fact that the vote was legally not binding, Mexico’s President insisted on stopping the construction and repeatedly favored a new location in the south of the country where he was born. He argued that the south of Mexico has abundant of water while the north is arid and the brewery competes with farmers and others for the scarce water resource. However, since all of the beer produced by CB in Mexico is destined for the USA, the US company prefers a location in the north close to the border to the USA.
In September, Bill Newland, Bill Newlands, President and Chief Executive Officer at CB said his company “will continue working with local authorities, government officials and members of the community on next steps related to our brewery construction project in Mexicali and options elsewhere in Mexico.” (inside.beer, 19.9.2020)
Obrador said yesterday that he had reached a deal with CB but did not reveal further details on the project. "They understood, and now they are going to set up a brewery, but in the South-East, where there is a lot of water. And an agreement was reached," he was quoted by El Ecomomista.
CB that exclusively produces the popular Corona beer and several other beer brands of Grupo Modelo for distribution in the USA was not immediately available for a comment.
Earlier this month, CB which has its origins in the wine business, announced that it had acquired a minority stake in the fast-rising rosé label, La Fête du Rosé. The investment was made through CB’s venture capital group and represents the first company to receive investment dollars as part of CB’s Focus on MinorityFounders initiative, which plans to invest USD 100 million in Black, Latinx, and minority-owned businesses by 2030.
