The world (at least) of UK beer at the moment tends to focus on the cost of living crisis and the struggle of some craft breweries to keep going.
But global big beer which operates in a very different environment continues to be active trending just as it did in the 1960s and 1970s towards monopoly.
Carlsberg-Marstons shut the historic Jennings brewery in Cockermouth last year. It also sold the Eagle Brewery in Bedford to another brewer. It then put up the Hampshire brewer Ringwood up for sale. Today it has announced the closure of Wychwood in Witney.
At least some of the beers brewed by these breweries will be brewed elsewhere by Carlsberg Marstons. Local provenance will be lost- perhaps in particular water type, jobs will be lost under the name of efficiencies and beer will be trucked further around the UK in a climate crisis.
About this Big Beer cares in its company annual reports, boxes are ticked but the bottom line of profit maximisation remains. Note not just profit but the maximum profit.
The report of Wychwood’s closure mentions six jobs at threat. Clearly it takes more than six people to brew the volume of beer produced. Interestingly a report of the closure of the Eagle brewery noted it brewed Wychwood’s Hobgoblin.
For Carlsberg Marstons what some might regard as traditional beers with a history and culture are just brand names
Update
Carlsberg-Marstons have told Jessica Mason (Drinks Business) that the decision is down to a decline in the cask ale market. There is no question cask is struggling at least in some areas of the country. However a lot Wychwood’s product seems to be bottles and cans for supermarkets- essentially a beer brand. In that sense it might be thought that Carlsberg-Marstons see the brewery as an inconvenience.
The Chair of Oxfordshire CAMRA Tony Goulding has told the Oxford Mail that Carlsberg-Marstons have been running down the site since the start of the pandemic in 2020. Instead of investing in it they have decided to close it.
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