Hall & Woodhouse to redevelop Blandford brewery
Dorset brewer Hall & Woodhouse (H&W) has announced plans to develop a new brewery at its Blandford St Mary site.
The existing 100-year old brewery will be decommissioned, with plans for a residential development which would preserve the Victorian buildings.
In its place, the brewer of the Badger beer range plans a new space-age brewery, to be built from scratch on an area of the Blandford site freed up by H&W's exit from soft drinks production.
Managing director David Woodhouse said: "We want to secure our brewing heritage for the next 100 years." He added: "Our existing brewery was built in 1899 and has served the company well, but a new brewery will enhance both our brewing capability and our competitiveness in the marketplace." A consultation process with the local community is planned before detailed proposals are drawn up, with work on the new brewery unlikely to start before 2007.
The company announced its plans as it launched Badger First Gold, a new 4 per cent ABV cask and bottled bitter which it expects to replace the existing Badger Best brand. H&W sold it soft drinks arm, which produced the Panda and Popzone ranges, to Vimto owner Nichols in January.
