stellation Brands has sealed a deal with a Mexican company to supply the wine-and-beer company with 7.3 million glass beer bottles over seven years.Vitro, S.A. B. de C.V. announced the supply contract, saying it will invest $100 million in upgrades at its Monterrey, Mexico, plant to meet the glass demand. Constellation is now the American distributor of imported Corona brands and has a major manufacturing plant in Mexico.
Constellation said in a statement that the supply deal with Vitro constitutes about 25 percent to 30 percent of its beer glass needs. According to the company statement, "this is just one part of the company's evolving glass strategy,'' The company declined to provide its existing glass strategy.
Constellation's beer division last week recalled some of its beer because glass particles were found in some bottles.
Constellation Brands said in a statement that it is recalling "select packages in the U.S. containing 12-ounce clear glass bottles of its Corona Extra beer that may contain small particles of glass. The voluntary recall covers 12-ounce clear bottles in select six-pack, 12-pack and 18-pack packages containing bottles with the production codes listed below.''
The recall was the result of company inspections that detected defects in certain bottles that could cause small particles of glass to break off and fall into the bottle. The company said no one has been injured because of the defective bottles.
The affected bottles came from one of four glass plants run by a third-party manufacturer, which the company did not name in its statement.
