The beer and pub sector supports around 1m UK jobs, with each job in brewing generating up to 20 elsewhere – and such work could be on the rise, with the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) noting the UK’s highest rate of new brewery openings in 40 years.

A CAMRA reports shows that 158 breweries have opened up in the space of just 12 months, pushing to 1,009 the number of brewers operational across the UK, four times the number that were open 20 years ago, and double the number in place a decade ago.

According to British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) figures, 46% of the 1m beer and pub workforce are aged 16 to 24, and every job in brewery in the UK generates one in agriculture, one in the supply chain, one in retail and 18 in pubs.

CAMRA’s survey was released to coincide with the launch of CAMRA’s Good Beer Guide 2013 yesterday [13 September]. The guide’s editor Roger Protz comments: “The boom in new breweries has, in many cases, made the term ‘micro’ obsolete, with some small brewers having become remarkably large, installing new equipment or doubling production to keep up with demand.”