External speaker on stage presenting at the Brewers' Day 2025 event held at Campden BRI

Insights from our Brewers’ Day event

11 February 2025 | Emma Hanby, Associate Director - Technology and Research Consulting

On the 28 January, we hosted our Brewers’ Day event, welcoming member delegates from across the brewing sector. Our member-only event, held in collaboration with the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), brought together a diverse group of experts to explore emerging trends and key challenges within the industry.

Campden BRI, is a dedicated partner to brewers, providing ongoing support in regulatory matters, brewing microbiology and industry research. The event offered a valuable insight into key issues affecting the brewing sector including regulatory updates, risks, resilience, sustainability and no/low alcohol beverages.

Highlights from the event

The day began with a welcome and introduction from Campden BRI’s CEO Peter Headridge, before handing over to our chair for the day Steve Livens, Policy Manager at BBPA, who introduced each speaker with a summary of their industry background.

The Brewer’s perspective

Brewing sector state of Union

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of BBPA

Emma McClarkin started the presentation sessions by offering an overview of the state of the brewing sector. As a former Member of the European Parliament, Emma discussed ongoing challenges like Brexit and the cost-of-living crisis.

Despite a slow recovery in consumer confidence, beer remains a popular beverage, and the market for low/no-alcohol varieties has steadily grown over the past decade. Emma noted that one emerging challenge is the need for more low/no-alcohol options on draft. She also emphasised the importance of decarbonising operations and building resilience to flooding and changing environmental conditions.

Emma concluded by acknowledging the valuable insights Campden BRI provides to the brewing industry, supporting brewers with regulatory and research needs.

Sector risks, priorities, and opportunities

Kath Dunbar, global director of science and regulatory affairs at AB-InBev

Kath Dunbar’s presentation focused on AB-InBev’s core principles: transparency, food safety, and consumer awareness. She highlighted the company's commitment to voluntarily labelling all products, even when not legally required, to ensure consumers have detailed information on ingredients.

Kath discussed the brewing industry's biggest risks, such as the importance of accurate food safety and allergen labelling and the growing threat of food fraud. She also explored the expansion of low/no-alcohol markets, navigating Brexit’s complexities, and the potential of novel ingredients.

Kath wrapped up her presentation by stressing the need for more consumer education about beer’s rich heritage.

Proper job 0.5%

Georgina Young, brewing director at St Austell Brewery

Georgina Young shared the story behind St Austell Brewery’s low-alcohol beer ‘Proper Job 0.5%’. She explained how the brewery developed this product in response to the growing trend of health-conscious consumers. The process involved using a special yeast to produce a low-alcohol version while retaining the bold flavours of the original IPA.

Extensive testing followed, including blind taste tests, which showed promising results, and the next step is to launch the product on draught. Georgina highlighted how innovation can meet consumer demand without compromising on brand integrity.

Hops and malting: a review of threats and opportunities

Climate risk and resilience in brewing

Bob Gordon, Director of the Zero Carbon Forum

Following a brief pause for a break and a chance for delegates to network, Bob Gordon led a session focused on the climate risks impacting hop and barley production.

Bob introduced a cross-industry project sponsored by The Workshipful Company of Brewers to assess how extreme weather conditions are affecting the production of hops and barley. The project consists of three phases: identifying material climate risks, assessing physical risks based on data, and exploring solutions, such as regenerative practices to improve soil health. Bob also emphasised the growing concern about climate change’s impact on crop yields and the brewing industry’s future.

The UK hop industry

Paul Corbett, managing director of Charles Faram

Keeping with the climatic theme, Paul Corbett provided an update on the UK hop industry’s efforts to ensure long-term resilience. Climate change poses significant challenges to hop yields and quality, but the UK’s northern location offers some protection. Paul discussed strategies being employed by growers, such as breeding new hop varieties and using technology like sensors to monitor environmental conditions. He also highlighted the integration of innovative farming techniques to help mitigate climate risks and ensure the future sustainability of British hop production.

UK malting sector update

Julian South, executive director of the Malters’ Association of Great Britain (MAGB)

Julian South’s presentation focused on the challenges and opportunities facing the UK malting industry.

Julian discussed the vulnerability of barley supply and the need for new barley varieties to address climate change and other environmental concerns. He also highlighted the importance of collaboration to develop sustainable farming practices and reduce the carbon footprint of barley cultivation. He argued that the malting industry’s focus on food safety, sustainability, and research is key to securing a resilient future.

Mark Riley on stage presenting at the Brewers' Day 2025 event held at Campden BRI

The Campden BRI perspective

Regulatory challenges, constraints, and opportunities for alcoholic and no/low alcohol beverages

Mark Riley, regulatory affairs team manager at Campden BRI

In the final round of presentations for the day, Mark Riley gave attendees an update on the regulatory challenges affecting the brewing industry. He gave particular attention to some of the most popular issues brewers asked us about in 2024, including health warnings on package labelling, no/low alcohol and health claims on alcohol free products. This was to help give delegates a flavour of how Campden BRI can support them on regulatory matters.

Mark’s presentation touched on the recent Public Health (Alcohol) (Labelling) Regulations 2023 in Ireland and the anticipated EU alcohol labelling laws. Mark also discussed the rise of no/low-alcohol beverages and the regulatory challenges surrounding their labelling and marketing. He also explained the complexities of health claims on alcohol-free products, emphasising the need for brewers to navigate these regulations carefully.

Campden BRI’s research strategy

Emma Hanby, associate director for technology & research consulting at Campden BRI

Emma Hanby shared details of the strategy behind Campden BRI’s research investment programme including its focus on five main themes: food and drink safety, affordability, diet and health, digital, and sustainability & climate change.

Outlining how the organisation invests in research through internal programmes, academic collaborations, and externally funded projects, Emma went on to highlight how Campden BRI’s research helps brewers address emerging challenges and explore new opportunities.

To wrap up, Emma, briefly highlighted several research projects that we are currently progressing, to give attendees a flavour of the types of projects we can support.

Pathogen survival in low/no alcohol beer

Grzegorz Rachon, section lead for brewing microbiology research at Campden BRI

Grzegorz Rachon closed the day’s presentation sessions with a talk about his research on the survival of pathogens in low/no-alcohol beers, which involved a two-year study to assess the risks of pathogens, such as E. coli and Salmonella, in these beverages.

Having outlined the main aims behind the research including trying to give brewers better answers about the pathogen risks of non-alcoholic beers, the research concluded that typical pathogens were absent in most low/no-alcohol beers, though two emerging opportunistic pathogens were found in spoiled keg beers. This highlighted the need for more ongoing research, particularly in draught low/no-alcohol beer, to mitigate potential risks and ensure product safety.

Campden BRI’s brewing services Q&A session

The day finished with a final session featuring a Q&A with Peter Headridge, CEO of Campden BRI, Emma Hanby, Campden BRI and key experts from the chemistry team, providing delegates with insights into Campden BRI’s brewing services.

Questions to the panel ranged from regulatory changes and malting research to food safety and flavour testing. The objective of this open forum was to highlight how Campden BRI can support the brewing industry with the typical challenges that they face both now and in the future.

How we can help you with brewing microbiology and regulatory support

Finally, it’s worth reminding you about how we can support you in the area of brewing microbiology and any regulatory issues associated with this.

Brewing microbiology is major discipline within microbiology. Consequently, we offer a wide range of services within brewing microbiology that include:

For more information about these or our wider microbiology services in this area, please visit our brewing microbiology services page.

When it comes to regulatory issues, the structure of food and drink legislation can vary significantly around the world. Fortunately, our experienced team of regulatory experts can help you to ensure that your products are compliant with the legislative requirements of your target market.

For more information about how we can support our clients on the regulatory side, please visit our global regulatory support page.

About Emma Hanby

Emma has worked for Campden BRI since 2004. After graduating in Food Science and Nutrition from the University of Huddersfield in 2000, Emma worked in food manufacturing and retailing for a number of major companies in both technical and quality roles before moving to Campden BRI.

On joining Campden BRI, Emma first worked in Process Development and was involved in research into the use of Time Temperature Integrator (TTI) particles for establishing thermal processes. She moved to the packaging and manufacturing section in 2005 becoming heavily involved in a variety of aspects of packaging.

Her background in industry and processing allows her to support clients in addressing key issues in production and packing. She moved to lead the Product Innovation team at Campden BRI in 2011. The Product Innovation team support companies in the development and manufacture of innovative products. During this time Emma also led the technical innovation aspects of the Food and Health Innovation Service; a unique project supporting Scottish food companies in developing innovative healthy food and drink products. In 2018 Emma moved to head up the service management team, designed to enable all clients of Campden BRI to access the right information and people to support their internal strategic project work.

Since 2019 Emma has been Associate Director of Research and Technology Consulting , leading a team of experts across a number of disciplines; Product and Process Innovation, Global Food Safety, Quality and Regulatory Affairs, Consumer and Sensory Sciences and the Campden BRI Research Programme.