Hispanic shoppers are spending less on groceries, pressuring companies

Hispanic consumers are cutting back their grocery spending on everything from beer to cooking spray, executives said during recent earnings calls.

Coca-Cola, Constellation Brands and Colgate-Palmolive are among the companies that have reported a slowdown in North American sales from Hispanic shoppers.

A fifth of the U.S. population identifies as Hispanic or Latino, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Hispanics are now the second-largest demographic in the U.S. and the second-fastest growing ethnic group, agency data shows.

As the population of Hispanic consumers grows, so does their purchasing power — and their contribution to companies’ bottom lines. According to the latest data from economic think tank Latino Donor Collaborative, the U.S. Latino economy grew to $3.6 trillion in 2022, up from $3.2 trillion the prior year. And when it comes to shopping, Hispanic Americans overall spend more on consumer packaged goods and outpace non-Hispanic consumers, according to market research firm Circana.

But the White House’s hard-line immigration stance and broader economic concerns have led some Hispanic consumers to pull back their spending.

Hispanic consumers drove a sharp decline in consumer net purchase intent in January, although the trend moderated in February, according to a research note from Goldman Sachs, citing HundredX data. The metric refers to the ratio of customers who intend to buy more from a brand subtracted from those who plan to buy less.

A contributing factor to the dip, some experts say, is fear around stricter immigration policy.

While the Trump administration has deported fewer people than President Joe Biden’s administration during the year-ago period, reports from Immigration and Customs Enforcement show it is holding 10% more detainees than it was under Biden.

Hispanic consumers helped Constellation Brands’ Modelo Especial overtake Bud Light as the nation’s top-selling beer. More than 50% of Modelo drinkers are Hispanic, according to CEO Bill Newlands.

But Constellation provided a weaker-than-expected outlook for its fiscal 2026, citing both tariffs and diminished spending from Hispanic consumers.

“The fact is, a lot of consumers in the Hispanic community are concerned right now. … Over half are concerned relative to immigration issues and how those impact [them]. A number of them are concerned about job losses in industries that have a high Latino employment base,” Newlands said on the company’s conference call in early April.

The Latino unemployment rate ticked up to a seasonally adjusted 5.2% in April, from 4.8% a year earlier and 5.1% in March, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“Things like social gatherings, an area where the Hispanic consumer often consumes beer, are declining today,” Newlands added.