New £4.2m. brewery opens in Burnley - PHOTO SPECIAL

At the opening of the new £4.2m. brewery in Accrington Road on Wednesday bosses said it has trebled production and now has the capacity to supply supermarkets with its real ales.

Previously the old brewhouse could not produce enough beer to satisfy demand from supermarkets, but Moorhouse’s new high-tech tower brewery on the same site has meant it has trebled production to more than 1,000 barrels a week - or 15 million pints a year.

It has also brought more than 20 new jobs, to increase the sales team to boost sales both at home and abroad and bring the total staff to 42, and has provided a visitor centre, training centre for the licensed trade and a restaurant and bar that will soon be open to the public.

Guests from the licensing trade and beer writers joined representatives from CAMRA and local licensees to toast the new brewery which has given Moorhouse’s regional brewer status to improve its standing in the brewing world still further.

The planned move to supply supermarkets will open up a whole new market for the company and even though many pubs are closing down – 1,300 shut their doors last year – Moorhouse’s say those that remain will serve better, cask beer such as Moorhouse’s which they expect to become a permanent feature on bars rather than just a guest beer.

Burnley Borough Council, which has supported the development through its four years of planning and construction, was also represented as brewing industry commentator Roger Protz officially opened the brewery and called it a remarkable success story.

He said Moorhouse’s now becomes a major British beer producer, two or three times the size of many older family and regional breweries. But size isn’t eveything and Moorhosue’s has grown because people like drinking its superb beers, he added.