Spanish firm invests £70m modernising town brewery

Damm has invested in a complete modernisation which includes a state-of-the-art canning line

A brewery that has been in operation for half a century has undergone a £70m revamp.

The former Charles Wells Brewery in Bedford, which merged with Youngs and was then run by Carlsberg Marston, has officially reopened after being modernised by Spanish company Damm.

It is the firm's first brewery outside the Iberian Peninsula and will be used to brew its flagship Mediterranean lager Estrella Damm.

Managing director Jorge Villavecchia said the Damm Eagle Brewery "will contribute not only to Damm's growth, but also to the resilience of the UK's wider economy".

He added the company was "bringing skills, innovation and a vision of how industry must evolve to remain competitive: more digital, more sustainable, more resilient".

Damm said it has transformed the Bedford brewery to meet industry-leading standards

Damm, which took over the site in 2022 and currently employs 180 people in the UK, said its ambition was to become the country's largest independent beer company.

The company hopes to meet increased UK demand for Estrella Damm, which has been brewed in Bedford since spring 2024.

The brewery has doubled packaging capacity and diversified into new formats and beverages, including soft drinks.

Damm also partners with other companies to distribute beverages to both pubs and restaurants as well as supermarkets.

The facility has an additional brewstream, almost doubling capacity to 1.8m hectolitres per year, with a target of 2m by 2027

Damm, which marks its 150th anniversary in 2026, also said it would be launching a programme in the UK for industry businesses and start-ups to support innovation, production and distribution.