UK: St Peter's Brewery has decided to remain independent

St Peter's Brewery, the East Anglian brewery, has taken down the “For Sale” sign and decided to remain independent. Bosses have decided to drop plans to sell St Peter's Brewery at South Elmham, near Bungay, and to continue running the business independently, The Publican communicated on December 14.

The Suffolk-based brewery put itself on the market back in August with a price tag of around GBP 20 mln, following founder and sole shareholder John Murphy's decision to give up his business interests. John Murphy, who had planned to retire, will stay on as chairman of St Peter's.

Yesterday, plans were unveiled to pump £250,000 into the venture to boost production capacity. The money will be spent on fermenting vessels, conditioning tanks and other equipment, and one extra member of staff will be recruited.

St Peter's beers, with their distinctive oval bottles, can be found in 15 countries and on the shelves of most British supermarkets. The brewery produces bottled beers, cask ales and spiced ales, using water from its on-site borehole.

The firm, which has a staff of 45, said yesterday: “Despite significant interest and several offers to buy the company, it has been decided, given the strong performance of the company, to take the business forward under independent ownership.”

It added: “To keep up with demand from the UK and overseas for the distinguished St Peter's beers and ales, St Peter's Brewery has announced a £250,000 investment to increase its production by a further 40pc at its Suffolk-based site, giving up to 11,000 barrels capacity per annum.”

Managing director Colin Cordy said: “Sales in 2005 are 36pc ahead of last year and would have been even higher if we had more capacity to meet demand. Our export sales have grown strongly again this year with the US performing particularly well. We have also begun selling our beers in five new overseas markets. In the UK we have seen excellent growth considerably ahead of the overall beer market.

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