20/09/2010
The brewing industry has endured a tough time in recent years, but new figures suggest that small breweries have carved out a niche position and are positively thriving.
According to BBC News, seventy eight new breweries have opened in the last twelve months, bringing the total number of breweries in the UK up to 767.
Many of the new breweries that have sprung up are so-called 'micro-breweries,' which have benefited from a surge in popularity for traditional, real ales.
Real ale has traditionally had a fairly limited target audience. However, young people - women in particular - are discovering a new-found appreciation for the drink, not dissimilar to that enjoyed by cider in recent times.
While beer from pubs remains fairly expensive compared to supermarket prices, consumers seem prepared to pay that bit extra for quality, good-tasting ale.
Owners of small breweries have been the main beneficiaries, with some even having to ration supplies to satisfy a soaring demand for their traditional ales.
Reuters cite the example of Thornbridge Brewery in Derbyshire, which in the space of five years went from brewing beer in small sheds to producing 20,000 barrels a year on a custom-built site.
Like any new business, small breweries can find their cashflow limited when they first set up, bu services such as invoice discounting and factoring can free up vital funds until the big orders start flooding in.
The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) revealed the new brewery figures in its Good Beer Guide report, and said that micro-breweries were succeeding despite difficult economic conditions.
"Against all odds, craft breweries continue to sprout like mushrooms at dawn," Good Beer Guide editor Roger Protz was quoted as saying.
"The main reason is a simple one - craft brewers are responding to genuine consumer demand," he added.
Joseph Jeffries