Ep59 — The State of Independence

Since the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent cost of living crisis, the UK has experienced the closure, or change in ownership of nearly 200 small, independent breweries. Prior to that, however, we saw a boom, growing from just over 700 in 2013, to more than 2000 at the start of 2020.

Around 700 of these breweries are members of SIBA, the Society for Independent Brewers and Associates. In March 2024, our host Matthew Curtis visited its annual trade show, Beer X, in Liverpool, and wandered the trade floor asking members two simple questions: what’s the biggest challenge facing their business at the moment, and what’s one thing they’re feeling positive about when it comes to beer and brewing.

It seems like a simple premise, but it revealed that while the industry is still facing hardships—illustrated by that decrease in overall brewery numbers—there’s still plenty to smile about. Independent beer, it seems, still has plenty of fight left in it, and that’s something all drinkers should take to heart. 

This episode features, in order of appearance: Catherine Webber (Attic Brew Co), Charlotte Thomson (Indie Rabble/A Hoppy Place), Paul Jones (Cloudwater), Sean O'Reilly (Brids Cross Brewery), Steve Dunkley (Beer Nouveau), Laura Rangeley (Abbeydale), Julie and Les O'Grady (Neptune), Richard Archer (Utopian Brewing), Cameron Brown (Turning Point Brew Co) and Sam Martin (Leigh on Sea Brewery).

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