Bristol Brewery saved from administration after successful boycott campaign
Consumer boycott campaigns going back to the Chartists in the 1840s are often questioned in terms of how effective they really are. In recent times campaigns on South Africa and Barclays Bank (several times) have had an impact however.
One example where a consumer boycott has clearly worked is Moor Brewery in Bristol. Moor have brewed some good and on occasion innovative beers over the years.
However there were allegations about poor employment relations and in the summer then owner Justin Hawkes made a very public outburst opposing Palestinian rights.
I don’t agree with Hawkes view at all but there are numbers who have similar positions- a quick look at the Daily Telegraph will confirm it.
The problem was that Hawkes clearly associated his views with Moor beers. Again despite what might be hoped are the progressive views of at least some indy brewers, historically beer has been closely associated with the Tory Party- the Beerage. This meant two things. Firstly breweries donated money to the Tories, secondly they might speak out for the Tories at election times.
Its reasonable to say however that they didn’t make supporting the Tories a condition for drinking their beer.
Hawkes outburst led to boycott campaign and on December 11th 2025 he walked away from Moor, cutting all links. Two people associated with another Bristol brewer Left Handed Giant have stepped in to see if Moor can be saved.
I hope so because as above the beer was decent, but the impact of the boycott in six months shows what can be done
Kmflett's Blog 
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