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Beer wastage costs UK hospitality sector £200m per year
The UK’s hospitality industry is losing an estimated £212 million annually due to beer wastage, according to new research.
The data, unveiled by beer quality services business Avani Solutions, coincides with the launch of an industry-first campaign to tackle the issue.
According to the research, inefficient pouring techniques, poor cellar management, and operational mishaps are leading to waste issues. The findings revealed that out of the two billion pints poured annually in the UK, around 43% are wasted, equating to 860 million pints of beer being lost every year.
The campaign to confront the problem, named Wastewatchers, is being backed by trade association UKHospitality and is now setting out to provide pubs and bars with practical training to reduce losses and improve profitability.
Speaking about the issue, Avani Solutions managing director Amanda Thomson warned that, without intervention, this avoidable loss was “severely impacting pub revenues”.
Thomson said: “Through our experience of working with draught beer dispense systems, and by the independent research we’ve conducted across licensed UK hospitality venues of all sizes from village pubs to licensed retail groups, we have identified that approximately 43% of pints poured suffer from wastage. Do the maths and it’s an incredible amount of beer and over £200m in revenue that is literally being poured away.”
Talking more about how the initiative to deal with the waste problems, Thomson explained: “This campaign exists to highlight the waste that is happening and help hospitality both to recover the easily avoidable wastage and otherwise lost revenue. There has never been a more perfect time to launch WasteWatchers given the extra financial burden the sector is being forced to carry. We want to help venues increase their yield, their profits and improve their quality of serve.”
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The campaign has already seen success with pub group Chestnut Group, which operates 19 pubs across East Anglia, and were first to trial it across its estate.
Chestnut Group CEO Philip Turner admitted: “Working with the Avani Team has meant we’ve reduced our wastage and are saving money as a result. We have always monitored waste, so we didn’t think we would have much to learn with WasteWatchers. However, the data we collected, and the expert training the team received from Avani helped us laser in on causes of waste, from pouring techniques to cellar management practices.”
UKHospitality CEO Kate Nicholls OBE added: “The Avani WasteWatchers campaign really highlights how important it is to reduce beer waste, and how doing so will tangibly deliver cost savings for your business. With hospitality under huge pressure, all licensed venues will be reviewing their processes for efficiency, and the WasteWatchers advice can play a critical role in reducing wastage, as well as helping venues become more sustainable. ”
To help operators, Avani has also produced a training video showing bar staff exactly where they’re going wrong – and how they can pour the perfect pint without wasting a drop. Pub and bar operators can also now sign up for a free practical guidance pack, complete with a 25% discount on a hands-on training workshop.
The workshop is a two hour interactive on-site session with beer quality specialists who will teach staff how to eliminate waste, and even cut down on energy costs and adjust other operational practices to maximise profit. The research team insisted: “These small changes have the potential to save up to £5,000 per year for just one venue.”
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