Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company (CMBC) – the joint venture between Carlsberg UK and Marston’s Brewery – is to close its Jennings Brewery in Cockermouth.

CMBC said the brewery, located in the Lake District in north-west England, had been operating at below capacity, seeing a “significant decline in volumes” in recent years. The brewer added it would now explore options for the site, including a sale. The logistics arm of the factory will continue to operate whilst the process takes place.

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Production of beers including Jennings Cumberland Cask will move to CMBC’s Marston’s Brewery in Burton.

CMBC chief executive Paul Davies said the company was exploring opportunities for redeployment for staff employed at the facility. Five jobs are expected to be lost following the closure.

“We understand the great affection the local community has for the brewery, and its place as part of the UK’s brewing heritage,” he said. “We are pleased to continue brewing Cumberland Cask by moving production to the historic Marston’s Brewery in Burton, which has a fantastic track record producing traditional cask beers.

“Jennings has operated below capacity for a number of years and has seen a significant decline in volumes, the impact of which has been made more significant by the pandemic. Over the course of the past year, we have carefully considered all options for the brewery and have reached the extremely difficult decision to close the brewery.

“We understand this news will be very difficult for our team at Jennings and disappointing to many other colleagues, consumers and customers. But with the economic headwinds impacting our industry we must continue to make the difficult choices we believe are needed to ensure CMBC is well placed to navigate the unprecedented external challenges we are facing and ensure we are able to grow and sustain our position as a leading business in the brewing industry.”

Jennings Brewery was established in 1828 and has been situated in Cockermouth since 1874. The brewery was acquired by Marston’s in 2005 and was folded into CMBC when the Wolverhampton-headquartered firm merged with Carlsberg UK in 2020.

The GBP780m (US$900m) merger valued Marston’s brewing division at up to GBP 580m.

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