Guinness price rise 'awful' insists Midlands publican and vintners leader

The decision by Diageo, the drinks company which brews Guinness, to increase the price of a pint by four cents has been branded as “incomprehensible” by a Midlands publican.

The global brewer wrote to all publicans in the country advising the price of a pint will increase by four cents (five cents when VAT is included) from August.

Diageo blamed rising costs.

"We continue to experience rising input costs across our business operations in Ireland. We are working to manage and absorb much of this, but to maintain a sustainable business, we have written to our customers in the on-trade to advise them of an increase on draught beer list prices of 4 cent per pint," it said.

John Clendennen is owner of Giltraps Bar and Glamping in Kinnitty, who is the national president of the Vintners Federation of Ireland.

“This is incomprehensible both in the need for such an increase and the timing of it. Diageo took a 12-cent increase back in February which, in my memory, is the highest-ever increase imposed. Many of the factors under ‘rising business costs’ Diageo refer to as justification for the increase were either known back in February and included in that increase or, indeed, have reduced in the meantime”.

Mr Clendennen said the price increase is poorly timed and deeply unfair to both consumers and publicans.

“The timing is awful. We are in the middle of peak tourist season, businesses in tourist areas that need good summers to see them through the quiet winter period are suffering from the loss of accommodation beds, while the consumer is reeling from increased mortgage and other cost of living increases. I can’t think of a more inopportune time for a supplier to even be thinking of increasing prices, let alone doing it.

“I believe Diageo are out of tune with both their customers and the consumer. I will be calling on Diageo to review this decision immediately,” the VFI President concluded.

Diageo rose prices in February by 12 cent a pint. The latest rise means represents 16 cent a pint increase since costs starting going up.