- People seem to be confusing Corona Extra beer with the deadly Wuhan coronavirus.
- Online searches for “corona beer virus,” “beer virus,” and “beer coronavirus” have risen around the world since January 18.
- But Corona, the beer company, told Business Insider it trusts customers not to link the virus to its drinks.
- “We believe, by and large, that consumers understand there’s no linkage between the virus and our business,” Maggie Bowman, a representative for Corona’s producer Constellation Brands, told Business Insider.
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Corona Extra says it trusts customers not to link its beer to the deadly Wuhan coronavirus in China, as search trend data suggested people were concerned.
Online searches for “corona beer virus,” “beer virus,” and “beer coronavirus” have rocketed around the world since January 18, in an apparent confusion that the drink and the virus are linked.
But Corona, the beer company, doesn’t seem to be concerned.
“We believe, by and large, that consumers understand there’s no linkage between the virus and our business,” Maggie Bowman, senior communications director at Constellation Brands, Corona’s producer, told Business Insider on Wednesday.
From January 18 to January 26, searches for "corona beer virus" jumped 2,300% globally, according to Google Trends.
Searches for "beer virus" jumped 744% in the same period, and searches for "beer coronavirus" jumped 3,233%.
There is no link between the beer and the virus.
While the numbers are striking, it is important to note that Google's search engine is programmed to auto-suggest terms based on popular terms. The boom in searches for corona beer and the virus could therefore be self reinforcing.
"Corona" in Latin means crown, and the word is the same in Spanish. Corona beer originated in Mexico.
In English, the anatomical term "corona" is used for body parts resembling a crown. Hence, the name "coronavirus" comes from the fact that under a microscope, the virus has crown-like spikes protruding from it, as previously reported by Business Insider's Holly Secon.
As of Thursday, 170 people have been killed and more than 6,000 infected by the coronavirus that broke out in Wuhan, a major city in central China, in early December.
Wuhan and several other Chinese cities have been quarantined in an attempt to stop the virus from spreading.
At least seventeen countries, including the US, have reported cases of the coronavirus.
- Read more:
- The Wuhan coronavirus outbreak has spread to 18 countries. Here's how to protect yourself while traveling.
- The Wuhan coronavirus has officially spread to every single region in China
- An emergency UK flight out of Wuhan has been canceled, leaving 200 Britons and their families stranded in quarantine
- A Costco sample stand worker turned away a kid wearing a face mask because she thought he was 'from China' and could give her coronavirus
