Corona Brewer Disputes Reports of a Virus-Related Hit

By Jennifer Maloney

Beer and wine maker Constellation Brands Inc. Friday disputed news reports that consumers are afraid of catching coronavirus from Corona beer.

Sales growth of Corona beer in U.S. retail stores for the four weeks ended Feb. 16 outpaced the brand's trend over the past 52 weeks, Constellation said in a news release, citing IRI data.

On Thursday, the ad agency 5WPR said it had conducted a phone survey of 737 people and found that 16% of beer drinkers were confused about whether Corona beer was related to the novel coronavirus. Several news outlets reported on the survey.

"It's extremely unfortunate that recent misinformation about the impact of this virus on our business has been circulating in traditional and social media without further investigation or validation," Constellation Chief Executive Bill Newlands said.

Write to Jennifer Maloney at Jennifer.Maloney@WSJ.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 28, 2020 16:12 ET (21:12 GMT)

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