Tequila producers are blaming a dip in sales on President Donald Trump’s hardline approach to immigration.
The world’s biggest tequila producer, Proximo Spirits, said that anxiety among Hispanic consumers has hit sales. Lander Otegui, head of marketing at the company, the U.S. distribution arm for Jose Cuervo owner Becle, said heightened enforcement has created a climate that discourages people from leaving their homes, and therefore, buying booze.
“The tension of the immigration policies has created a very difficult atmosphere with consumers, especially with immigrants, with Hispanics, [who] obviously make up a big portion of our particular business,” Otegui said.
That tension has intensified as immigration policies ramped up throughout 2025, alongside high-profile raids in states including Michigan and Minnesota. According to Otegui, the result has been fewer restaurant visits, fewer bar tabs, and less tequila.
“Consumers are afraid, even [if they] are legal,” he said. “You’re just afraid because you don’t want to get in trouble… So they don’t want to go out to restaurants. They don’t want to go out to bars.”
The slowdown comes as spirits makers were already facing weaker demand. After years of inflation, some drinkers have traded down to cheaper options or cut back altogether over health concerns.
For Becle, in the three months ending in December, the volume of tequila sold in the U.S. and Canada fell 6.4 percent from a year earlier, while revenue dropped 12.2 percent amid more aggressive pricing.
Otegui said enforcement fears extended even to routine errands, with some Hispanic shoppers avoiding grocery stores after reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity at supermarkets. Older immigrants without legal status were sending their children to shop instead, he said, but those under 21 could not legally purchase tequila.
Industry-wide data points in the same direction. Tequila sales in the U.S. fell 6.5 percent year over year in December, according to NielsenIQ. Other consumer companies, including Constellation Brands and Coty, have also flagged softer sales among Hispanic customers tied to deportation fears.
“The general atmosphere is very, very delicate right now,” Otegui said. “And when people stay home they tend to consume less.”
The White House has been contacted for comment.
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