CAMRA calls for probe into big brewers' fake craft beer claims

CAMRA has asked the Competition and Markets Authority to investigate Britain’s beer market after its new Beer in the UK report said four foreign-owned corporations make 80% of the beer produced in Britain. The consumer report, published on July 6, also said seven of the UK’s ten best-selling craft beers are made by those same big four, turning what looks like a branding row into a fight over competition, shelf space and tap access.

The report says many of the big-name “imported” lagers sold in pubs and supermarkets are not imported at all, but brewed in Britain under foreign branding. It points to production in Magor in South Wales, Manchester, Northampton, Burton-on-Trent, Wrexham and Bedford, arguing that drinkers are being sold a foreign image on beer that is actually made in UK plants. CAMRA says the issue is not just about labels, but about how independent brewers are being pushed out of bars across the country.

Smaller brewers moved quickly to back the call. Andy Slee, chief executive of the Society of Independent Brewers and Associates, backed CAMRA’s push for a competition probe and warned that independents need fair access to market and fairness in taxation. SIBA’s UK Brewery Tracker shows why the pressure feels so acute: the UK had 1,578 individual breweries on January 1, 2026, down from 1,715 at the start of 2025, with closures averaging about 2.6 a week in 2025.

A CMA market study can last up to 12 months, while a market investigation can run for 18 or 24 months under current guidance, so any probe would stretch well beyond a quick regulatory look. The British Beer and Pub Association says its members brew 90% of the beer produced in Britain and look after about 20,000 pubs, a reminder of how concentrated the trade already is before any watchdog gets involved. For CAMRA, the point is the same one it made at the start: drinkers should know what they are buying, and independent breweries should have a fair shot at the bar.