West Country pubs forced to pour thousands of pints of beer down the drain
Pubs in the West Country have been forced to pour thousands of pints of beer down the drain because of lockdown.
Breweries across the region, including Cornwall, Devon and Dorset, have all reported throwing beer away because it went out of date.
The quantity has been so huge landlords have had to book designated time slots with South West Water before pouring it down the drain.
The Polgooth Inn near St Austell had more than 800 pints to dispose of while The Cornubia Inn in Hayle threw away more than 2,000.
Breweries booked slots to ensure water treatment plants were freed as beer takes a lot of oxygen to break down, and oxygen is vital to the way the plants work.
Around 100 pubs in the region had their requests to pour beer down the drain declined, as nearby treatment works were too small to deal with the load.
Instead, those pubs were asked to return their beer to breweries, or take it to bigger water treatment centres.
A number of pubs in the West Country are making the final changes ahead of reopening this weekend - with some installing hand sanitiser bottles and scrapping bar service to ensure they remain coronavirus-free.
Click here to read more on how our pubs and breweries are preparing to reopen here.
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