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BEER FEAR

Scots pub warns rising beer cost could see a price of a pint increase by £1.50

A SCOTS pub has warned the cost of a pint could increase by as much as £1.50.

The prediction comes as Heineken moves to raise the price of its beer by 15% in the new year.

The Red Lion in Prestwick shared the eye-watering wholesale costs
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The Red Lion in Prestwick shared the eye-watering wholesale costsCredit: Facebook
The Ayrshire pub shared the snap to let their customers know about the threats to the hospitality sector
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The Ayrshire pub shared the snap to let their customers know about the threats to the hospitality sectorCredit: google maps
Birra Moretti could see a wholesale cost of 42p added to each pint
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Birra Moretti could see a wholesale cost of 42p added to each pintCredit: Not known, clear with picture desk

The Red Lion in Prestwick, Ayrshire, shared a picture of the eye-watering hikes from the beer supplier wholesale price list to show their customers the reality pubs face during the cost-of-living crisis.

Heineken owns major brands like John Smith, Fosters, Amstel, Birra Moretti, Kronenbourg, Desperados, Bulmers and Old Mout.

In the image, a pint of Fosters lager will cost the pub 30p more, with a pint of Heineken rising 37p at cost price.

The average price of a Heineken product will jump up by between 26p and 46p.

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For premium Birra Moretti it will cost the pub an extra 42p per pint - with a pint of Amstel Bier costing an additional 37p.

The pub said that to maintain the current margins required to sustainable run the pub these price rises could mean between £1.20 and £1.50 added on to the cost of a pint.

But the boozer said they would NOT be raising their pints by that amount but were sharing for transparency so punters understand the extent of the challenges facing the hospitality sector.

They said: "If every product went up by 40p and we only put our prices up by 40p then our gross margin would fall dramatically and the business wouldn’t be viable for very long.

"We’re not saying we’re putting our prices up by £1.20-ish.

"We’re telling you what they should go up by to maintain a sustainable business.

"We’ll be talking to other brewers & changing products most likely."

They added: "This is their third increase in 11 months. Meaning some pins are paying 70-80p more a pint than they were this time last year."

The Dutch beer maker said it will start charging 15.8% more per keg from January 16, 2023.

The rise will affect pints on draught sold by pubs, as well as bottled and canned beers sold in both pubs and supermarkets.

The rise could hit drinkers if they choose to pass on the wholesale price rise on.

Glasgow's Blackfriars pub, who are also supplied by Heineken, has also experienced a notable rise in the cost of a pint.

The recently renovated boozer has seen the whole sale jump twice in the last two years.

Their duty manager told the Scottish Sun: "There have been some grumbles about the cost of a pint going up but it is a double edged sword with wages to pay and the cost of energy.

"We tried to protect the customer from the price rises but we've had to add on the costs after the second rise."

A pint of Heineken in the pub has jumped from £5 to £5.50 and may go up again with the future hikes.

She added: "It's the average for the area but it keeps getting pushed up and up."

Heineken says the move is due to rising energy prices which is having an impact across the sector.

A spokesperson for Heineken said: "Like many UK manufacturers, Heineken UK is facing unprecedented cost increases on a number of critical inputs used to make beer and cider.

"This is predominantly driven by the significant rise in energy prices, which is also having a dramatic impact on the costs of other goods including glass, aluminium and malted barley.

Read more on the Scottish Sun

“Whilst we have undertaken initiatives to increase our efficiency and reduce cost volatility, the scale of these input cost increases means we have no choice but to change the wholesale price of our products to our customers.

“We appreciate these are challenging times, and we are committed to working with our customers to support a strong and sustainable category going forward.”  

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