CAMRA rounds on Greene King's Ridley's deal
The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) has launched a scathing attack on Greene King's acquisition of Essex brewer Ridley's, and has demanded the government investigate the deal.
Greene King announced on Monday week it had bought the 163 year-old Hartford End brewery and its 73-strong estate for £45.6m. The company said it would be closing Ridley's historic brewery and moving beer production to its own facility in Bury St Edmunds.
CAMRA said the deal threatened consumer choice in the Ridley's hinterland of Essex and East Anglia and should be scrutinised by the Competition Commission. It called for the return of legislation forcing brewers with more than 2,000 pubs to give tenants the freedom to sell a guest beer from a supplier of their choice. CAMRA's chief executive Mike Benner said: "This follows hot on the heels of the takeover of Jennings by Wolverhampton & Dudley in June. A new generation of national brewers has been created and is a threat to consumer choice."
Greene King should reconsider its plan to close Ridley's brewery, he added, and take steps to sell the operation as a going concern "to someone who can use it to brew beer".
Dave Wickett, whose Sheffield-based Kelham Brewery outsourced its Pale Rider beer to Ridley's last year after winning the Champion Beer of Britain award at the Great British Beer Festival, said he was saddened by the news, but not surprised.
"It is the way the industry has been moving for some time," he said. "I think it's a good piece of business by Greene King. They got rid of a competitor, a competitor's brands and got 70 pubs into the bargain."
In response, Greene King said: "Greene King probably invests more in cask beer than any other brewer in the UK. Cask beer needs champions. It needs strong brands that drive sales as well as less well known, niche products. We provide both. We brew 11 cask beers a year, and we have a track record of supporting brands we've bought, for example, sales of Old Speckled Hen, which we acquired when we bought Morland, have grown 91 per cent in five years.
"Two different guest beers are on offer to the pub estate all year round."
Related articles:
Greene King snaps up Ridley's in £45.6m deal (4 July 2005)
