Adnams has today published its Report & Accounts for the 12 months to 31 December 2014, showing sales of £66.0m and a £3.8m operating profit. Adnams reported a growth in beer volumes approaching 10%.

Commenting on the performance in 2014, Jonathan Adnams OBE, Chairman, said

“I am very pleased to be reporting a strong year for Adnams in 2014. We have seen our operating profit grow by 15% to £3.8 million on the back of a 9% increase in turnover to £66.0 million. Sales of our own beer reached their highest ever levels at over 95,000 barrels (over 27 million pints)…

“We have been growing and strengthening the Adnams brand over a long period of time and our name and reputation, backed-up by high quality products, have served us well in very competitive markets in the last year. A lot of things came right for us in 2014, much of which were down to our own strategies and some were down to a stronger external environment. The economic upturn that we saw in the second half of 2013 continued during 2014 and the beer market showed its first increase in volumes for many years. The weather too was relatively benign for much of the year…

“Adnams is well placed to participate in the growing market for craft beers, both in cask and keg. We have an established reputation, a first class range of products and an ability to innovate and respond to consumer demands. Alongside this, we need equipment that gives us the flexibility to deliver what the market requires. This is the backdrop to a major investment programme that we will be undertaking between now and 2018. We will be spending some £7 million on the brewery to ensure that we have the capacity to produce not just our core cask ales, but also the kegged, canned and bottled products that are in increasing demand.”