Kmflett's Blog

Roger Protz speaking on Motion 3 on 12th April 2025

CAMRA Conference backs Indy Beer in the fight against the impact of Global Big Beer

The 2025 Campaign For Real Ale conference is taking place in Torquay this weekend. I have attended occasionally over the years, having been a member since 1975, but this year for the first time it was streamed on-line. It worked well, although seeing the conference floor as well as the top table would have been interesting.

Motion 3 (below) focused on the need for CAMRA to promote Indy Beer and was mercifully free of discussion on whether this might mean cask, keykeg or keg. In fact there was a focus on the importance of bottle shops in promoting drinking choice beyond the products of Big Beer.

It was good to hear from Roger Protz who in particular slammed Carlsberg for (with a couple of exceptions) destroying the Burton Union system of brewing. He also called for Government intervention to protect British brewing underlining that, for example, in France the Government did this to protect wine.

Several speakers called for remission on the grounds that a focus on Indy Beer might prevent promotion of beers like Bass and Fullers which are not independently owned. It was pointed out that there was no contradiction, as the motion did not stop this.

A motion for remission failed and the substantive motion was passed. Progress in campaigning history one hopes

Motion 3

This Conference agrees that UK beer lovers have been badly let down by the lack of leadership and imagination shown by the multinational brewers and large property firms that, between them, control the UK beer trade. Conference therefore instructs the National Executive to ensure that all relevant CAMRA publications and communications pledge preferential support to beer producers and suppliers that are independent of the influence of the multinational brewers, and to make the case persistently for this stance.