UK: Pubs in the Guernsey Island are among the most expensive in the British Isles

Guernsey Brewery's decision to increase by 5p the price of spirits, beer and cider has sent the cost of a pint of standard lager in its outlets up to £2.35 in the Town centre and Ј2.30 elsewhere, The Guernsey Press posted on February 8. And bosses have refused to rule out further changes in the short term.

The equivalent drink costs GBP2.20 in Randalls pubs but the firm yesterday indicated that it could follow with a similar price rise at the beginning of March.

In Jersey Brewery pubs, despite a massive 12p price hike, a pint of Carling now costs Ј2.28.
With the UK average at Ј2.25 for a pint of lager, Guernsey is second in cost only to London. And this is despite the fact that duty makes up only 22p of the cost of a standard pint in Guernsey compared with 29.5p in the UK.

'Mainly, this is because of the cost of getting the products over here,' said Guernsey Brewery general manager Tony Hutchings.

'Getting stock to the island is not cheap and, in addition, the cost of living is more expensive here.
'Of course, in the islands you cannot have what are known as one-arm bandits 'gambling machines', whereas in the mainland they contribute to 15 to 20% of the profitability.

'You are also never going to get the two islands with exactly the same prices because of the differences in duty and the fact that in Jersey there are two rates, with one for standard lagers and another for premium ones.'

Guernsey Licensed Victuallers' Association president Cindy de Jersey said that compared with the UK, the rents, wages, heating bills and general costs of living were higher here. It was revealed last week that Jersey Brewery pubs had increased their prices, with the cost of beer up by as much as 14p a pint.

CI Hospitality managing director Ed Daubeney said that a considerable part of the increases for beer was because of the States' decision to increase duty to pay for free TV licences for the over-75s.

He said the remainder came from manufacturers and suppliers passing on their costs, as well as the firm's own operational expenditure.

Speaking about the rises in Guernsey, Mr Daubenay said: 'We are facing higher operating costs and increased duty rates and that is what we have now passed on to drinkers. We are trying to keep price rises as low as possible but just can't absorb these extra costs.'

And he did not rule out further increases soon as a review of prices in Guernsey was continuing.
Treasury and Resources minister Lyndon Trott said yesterday that duty increases announced in the Budget could account for at most 2p of the 5p rise on a pint. He declined to comment further on the matter.

Randall's sales and marketing director Ben Randall said that raw materials for locally produced beer had gone up, costs to UK suppliers, especially fuel, had rocketed, duty had increased and the general cost of living had gone up.

Deputy Graham Guille, who has pushed for a competition law, said there seemed to be no public outcry about prices and this would be the main thing that would determine what any regulator would look at.

He added it was not as though there was just one supplier or that they appeared to be price fixing, something which was very difficult to prove. There is continued speculation that CI Traders, the power behind Guernsey Brewery and Jersey Brewery pubs, is trying to buy Randalls.

CIT said before Christmas that it was considering a range of options. Its chairman, Tom Scott, last month refused to rule out such a move. It is believed that Randalls is entering the final part of the process, with a decision expected in a month's time.

E-malt.com, the global information source for the brewing and malting industry professionals. The bi-weekly E-malt.com Newsletters feature latest industry news, statistics in graphs and tables, world barley and malt prices, and other relevant information. Click here to get full access to E-malt.com. If you are a Castle Malting client, you can get free access to E-malt.com website and publications. Contact us for more information at marketing@castlemalting.com .