The closure rate for UK breweries has slowed down in the first half of this year, according to SIBA, the trade body for independent brewers.

The organisation’s latest UK Brewery Tracker showed the number of net closures running at an average of less than one a week in the first six months of 2026, down from three each week in the corresponding period in 2025.

The net brewery closure rate from January to June 2026 was -16 – calculated by subtracting the total number of closures from any new openings – compared to an overall figure of -137 for the whole of 2025.

SIBA chief executive Andy Slee said: “The figures released today are a sign that brewery closure numbers may be beginning to stabilise following a number of particularly tough years, but for most breweries the struggles are not behind them.

“Brewing businesses which have managed to weather the storm are seeing strong demand for independent beer, but profitability is still a concern with lack of access to pubs, high taxation and high production costs hitting brewers.”

SIBA said 2025 was a record year for brewery closures in the face of rising costs and lingering Covid-era debt.

The Brewery Tracker figures reveal a mixed regional picture in the first half of this year.

The north west, south east and Wales each saw a net rise of three, and the south west an increase of one.

Scotland fared worse with a net closure figure of -9, with the north east (-8), Midlands (-4), Northern Ireland (-4) and the east of England (-1) all in negative territory.

“It is encouraging to see four areas of the UK growing their number of breweries in the first half of 2026,” added Slee. “Let’s hope this is the sign of things to come.”