NEWS

From extreme weather to increasing temperatures, climate change poses a significant threat to UK hop farming, an industry vital to British brewing. Asahi UK is partnering with researchers, industry and farmers on a new initiative to forge a path towards more sustainable hop farming, supporting its resilience for the future. Asahi UK For hundreds of years, hop farming has been a critical part of Britain’s brewing industry – where the hops themselves play the most significant p

The Brewers’ Research and Education Fund (BREF) 2026/2027 is now open for applications, with the Advisory Committee once again on the lookout for the brightest and best ideas to benefit the brewing and pub industry. For over a decade, the BREF has supported ideas that seek to improve and support the UK brewing industry. This has included awards for projects focusing on climate risk and resilience, hop diversification, benefits of moderate beer consumption and educational act

A brewery in Northumberland have taken home a haul of Golds in the North East's most prestigious beer competition, the Indie Beer Awards, held at the Brew York Beer Hall in York. Twice Brewed were named Champions in three keg beer style categories and then the 'best of the best' in the Overall Champions judging, taking the Gold medal haul for the brewery to an impressive four. Matthew Brown, Head Brewer at Twice Brewed, accepted the awards and had this to say on their wi

The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) has awarded Billingham Catholic Club in Billingham the Club of the Year 2025 title. Run in partnership with Club Mirror , the award recognises the best social clubs in the UK. Clubs are judged on their atmosphere, welcoming surroundings and, most importantly, the quality of their cask beer and real cider and perry. The former Roman Catholic school has featured in CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide for almost two decades, which is an incredible ac

Forty-six years after she took the keys to The Bull in Wargrave, near Maidenhead, landlady Jayne Worrall has become pub operator Brakspear’s longest-serving licensee. And despite the many challenges facing the industry, she has no imminent plans to call time. Jayne is in her third ‘life’ at The Bull, having started at the pub in January 1980 after an eight-year career as cabin crew with BOAC (later British Airways). In 1884 she moved to another Brakspear pub, The Rising Sun i

Partnership to pilot in 900 Greene King sport pubs across Britain Training provided for more than 16,000 Greene King team members Education and reporting tools for fans will help raise awareness Research shows eight in 10 people think pubs should be inclusive Kick It Out and Guinness 0.0 are launching a groundbreaking partnership in their mission to make every fan feel they belong in football. The collaboration between football’s leading anti-discrimination charity and th

How to address drug abuse in the night-time economy, respond to knife attacks, and the future of digital ID are among the major themes at this year’s National Pubwatch Conference. The 22nd annual event will take place at the Hilton Liverpool City Centre on 24 February 2026 , bringing together leading voices from policing and the licensed trade to share expertise and best practice on the challenges facing the sector. National Pubwatch is a voluntary organisation, which suppor

Joule’s Brewery has announced a recruitment open day for the Red Lion in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, as plans continue for the redevelopment of the historic pub. The open day will take place on Tuesday 11 February 2026, from 10am to 6pm , and will be hosted at Waterside Tap, Gas Street Basin, B1 2JT, while the Red Lion itself is under development. The event offers an opportunity for those interested in working with Joule’s to find out more about the Red Lion project, meet

In 2026, the iconic festival will be held at Denver’s Levitt Pavilion Boulder, CO | January 27, 2026 — The Great American Beer Festival ®(GABF®) is stepping outside. In a historic first, the nation’s favorite craft beer celebration will move outdoors on Saturday, October 10 and Sunday, October 11, 2026, relocating from the Colorado Convention Center to Denver’s Levitt Pavilion. The move signals a bold new chapter for GABF, blending its legendary beer lineup with live mus

Kevin Georgel, Chief Executive, St Austell Brewery: “We welcome today’s intervention by the government which will mitigate the impact of business rates increases that were scheduled for April. We are pleased that the government has engaged with our trade bodies and heard the voice of the British public who so clearly recognise and value the enormous economic, social and cultural contribution of our pubs. “It has been heartening to see the support of the public play out so

Nick Mackenzie, CEO of Greene King , said: “The Government’s announcement today offers some much-needed relief to pubs, and recognises the important role they play at the heart of communities across the country. This package gives reassurance to publicans by easing some of the considerable cost increases due to come into effect in April. “We look forward to continuing to work with the Government on its longer-term plan for fundamental reform of the business rates system, a

Emma McClarkin, CEO of the British Beer and Pub Association, said: “We are pleased the government has listened to our concerns, and those of publicans, consumers and MPs who rallied to defend our locals. This pub specific package will stave off the immediate financial threat posed by accelerating business costs and will help keep the doors open for many. “This additional support will provide certainty for tens of thousands of pubs, with many seeing their bills frozen or falli

"SIBA welcomes the announcement from Government they're backing Britain’s pubs and the breweries which supply them. On the basis the further 15% cut announced today applies to the business rates bills that were due in April this is good news for pubs and brewers, and will allay some of their worst fears. At the heart of revitalising hospitality is a rebalancing of the tax burden between online and highstreet businesses and pubs, and as such it is welcome to see recognition

FSA Gold verification across malting barley supply Berwick-upon-Tweed; January 27, 2026: Simpsons Malt Limited, the independent, fifthgeneration malting and merchanting business and Certified B Corporation, has successfully completed SAI Platform’s Farm Sustainability Assessment (FSA) third-party verification process, achieving Gold performance level across its entire UK malting barley procurement. A total of 678 growers – all directly contracted through agricultural merchan

Please find attached a release following the announcement on Business Rates from Dan Tomlinson in the House of Commons this afternoon. Notes to the editor: About the British Institute of Innkeeping: The BII is the leading independent licensee support organisation for individuals working in hospitality, with over 13,500 individual members running premises across the UK - predominantly tenanted, leased, managed and freehold pubs. The organisation provides expert helplines

Responding to the Treasury’s announcement of extra help for pubs in England with business rates, Ash Corbett-Collins, CAMRA Chairman (above) said: “This short-term announcement is not the ‘permanently lower business rates’ that pubs were promised. While it is positive that the Chancellor has listened and announced extra discounts for pubs facing the threat of closure, it is short-sighted to think that today’s statement will give publicans the certainty they need. “The

SUPPORT FOR SCOTTISH PUBS ALREADY FALLING BEHIND ENGLAND Following today’s announcement by the UK Government of increased business rates support for pubs in England, the Scottish Beer & Pub Association (SBPA) has warned that the Scottish Government must now follow through on its commitment to enhance relief north of the border—or risk further pub closures and job losses. Commenting, Paul Togneri of the SBPA said: “Pubs across Scotland urgently need additional support. While w

BEER & PUB ASSOC. REVEAL ELECTION MANIFESTO AS CLOSURE RATE 50% HIGHER THAN ENGLAND Scottish pub closure rate 50% higher than England One pub per week closed permanently in Scotland during 2025 1 in 16 Scottish pubs closed in last 5 years Additional business rates support and reintroduction of alcohol in football stadia key asks ahead of election Industry supports 65,000 jobs and contributes £2.3bn to Scottish economy Ahead of May’s Holyrood election, the Scottish Beer and Pu

According to new figures released today by the SIBA UK Brewery Tracker , brewery closure rates increased dramatically during 2025 compared to previous years, with a 37% spike compared to the previous year. The UK now has just 1578 individual breweries as of 1 st January 2026, compared to 1715 at the start of 2025, 1815 in 2024 and 1828 in 2023 when the brewery tracker started. The SIBA UK Brewery Tracker is compiled by the Society of Independent Brewers & Associates

According to an exclusive published in The Grocer today, the UK’s first deposit return scheme (DRS), due to launch in October next year, will go under the name Exchange for Change . According to the article, Russell Davies, chief executive of UK DMO said: “Our new name reflects what this scheme is about: making a simple change that has the power to transform streets, communities and recycling habits across the UK. The brand icon is intended to become synonymous with the sc