CAMRA insists ‘Fresh Ale’ is ‘perniciously misleading’

The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) has written to the Business Secretary to push for an investigation into Carlsberg Marstons Brewing Company’s (CMBC’s) ‘Fresh Ale’ concept.

The letter follows CAMRA asking National Trading Standards to investigate CMBC’s ‘Fresh Ale’ which involves serving filtered and kegged beer through handpumps that are usually used exclusively for cask-conditioned beer. Despite CAMRA’s pleas, National Trading Standards reported that it is unable to investigate ‘Fresh Ale’ at a national level, despite its predecessor agency, the Local Authority Co-ordinating Body on Trading Standards (LACOTS), carrying out a similar investigation in the 1980s.

CMBC has insisted its ‘Fresh Ale’ won’t replace cask, but will help by “reinvigorating the category” however these assurances have not been well received by CAMRA.

CAMRA has also submitted a formal complaint to West Northamptonshire Trading Standards, who are believed to have a ‘primary authority’ agreement in place with Carlsberg Ltd, the global brewer forming just over half of the CMBC Joint Venture.

In the letter to the Business Secretary, CAMRA real ale, cider and perry campaigns director Gillian Hough said: “The impact of this perniciously misleading form of dispense will affect the reputation and availability of cask-conditioned beer in all pubs and social clubs – an integral part of British heritage and pub culture.

Hough explained: “It is a self-evident fact that consumers should be as fully informed as possible about the product they are buying at the point of dispense. CAMRA is deeply concerned because, for beer drinkers, the use of a handpump to dispense beer is an indication that the beer is cask-conditioned, which these products are not. “

CAMRA chairman Nik Antona added: “Of course, if Carlsberg Marston’s were interested in being transparent, they could simply serve their ‘Fresh Ales’ from keg fonts, and be proud and clear about the characteristics of the beers.”

The moves by CAMRA follow the new beer category ‘Fresh Ale’ being launched last year by Otter Brewery in an attempt to traverse the cask ale, lager and craft beer categories to appeal to a broader range of drinkers. To explain more about how it differed from cask, db did a deeper dive into the concept in a follow up report on its creation.

What followed was CMBC then launching its own ‘Fresh Ale’ to begin “reinvigorating” Britain’s beer and pub culture. A decision that was welcomed by Otter Brewery, which then asked AB InBev and Heineken to join the category too. CAMRA, however, has remained stoic about the developments, while the BBPA has backed the ‘Fresh Ale’ concept as a good move for pubs.

A CMBC spokesperson told db: “Some weeks ago we offered to meet face to face with CAMRA to listen to their concerns around ‘Fresh Ale’ and discuss any potential solutions they may have to the on-going challenges the UK cask industry faces. Unfortunately we have not received any response to our request to talk.”