UK: Carlsberg Marston's Brewing Company set to close Ringwood Brewery on lack of buyers’ interest

Ringwood Brewery is set to close after its owners were unable to sell the operation, The Southern Daily Echo reported on December 4.

The Carlsberg Marston's Brewing Company (CMBC) put the Hampshire brewery and shop sites up for sale but no one has come forward with an acceptable offer to buy it in the last six months.

Best known for its cask ales and boar mascot present across all the brewery’s beers, Ringwood Brewery was founded in 1978, and after outgrowing its original premises, moved to the current site in Christchurch Road in 1986.

Production of the Ringwood ale brands will be moved to other breweries within the CMBC network and Ringwood Brewery will close in January, 2024.

Brewing for the cask variants of Razorback, Fortyniner and Boondoggle would be moved to Banks’s Brewery, while Old Thumper cask brewing would go to Marston’s Brewery.

Razorback, Boondoggle and Fortyniner bottles are already brewed at the Marston’s site.

The logistics side of the operation has already been moved to CMBC’s Tiverton and Farnborough sites.

In the coming weeks, the company will consult on the proposals with the 10 workers on the site, during which time Ringwood Brewery will continue to operate.

CMBC CEO Paul Davies said: "Having, over the last six months, been unable to secure a sale of our Ringwood Brewery operation in Hampshire, we have made the difficult decision to announce our intention to close the site.

"Given its limited space and residential location, the expansion and improvements required for the site to be competitive would be challenging and extremely costly. While we believe this is the right course of action for our business it is by no means a decision we have taken lightly."

In 2007, Ringwood was purchased by Marston's for £19.2 million. Marston's disposed of its brewing operations in 2020, selling assets to a joint venture with the Carlsberg Group to create the Carlsberg Marston's Brewing Company.

Mr Davies mentioned that he is "incredibly proud" of the effort and dedication of staff at Ringwood Brewery, adding: "Our priority now is to support colleagues affected by the proposals through the consultation period, which has now begun.”

05 December, 2023