The Grupo Modelo beer company, which makes 17 brands of beer including Pacífico, Modelo and Corona, has added two new brands to its portfolio, versions of Corona and Victoria containing just 1.8% alcohol. 

“At Grupo Modelo we are always looking to transform ourselves in order to give our consumers a wide variety of products for different consumption occasions,” said president Cassiano de Stefano on Monday. “Today a unique segment is born in Mexico that is characterized by its low alcohol content and that represents a historical event for two of the most important brands in the country.”

It’s not a coincidence that the two new brands were released during the coronavirus pandemic. Beer with less than 2% alcohol content is not considered an alcoholic beverage by the federal government and is thus marketable in municipalities that have enacted dry laws due to the coronavirus. 

Victoria Chingones was also designed to help support more than 4,000 farmers affected by the halt to beer production after it was deemed a nonessential business, Grupo Modelo said. 

Between 2013 and 2018, the total amount of beer consumed in Mexico, regardless of alcohol content, grew 56.2% with constant annual growth of 9.3%, a trend which is expected to continue in the future.

Source: Forbes (sp), Entrepreneur (en)