Traditionally, ‘Dry January’ is considered a quieter month for the UK on-trade, with consumers abstaining from alcohol and avoiding the pub altogether. However, given the phenomenal growth of the no and low alcohol category, driven by the health-conscious consumer, Dry January 2020 presents a lucrative opportunity for the nation’s pubs and bars.

With on-trade no and low alcohol sales rising by 48% (to around £60M[1]), it’s a great time for operators to review their range, attract new customers and capitalise on demand in January and the rest of 2020.

Best Western GB has announced the launch of its 2019 festive marketing campaign which is the latest activity to help raise vital funds for housing and homelessness charity, Shelter, the leading hotel group’s chosen charity of the year.

Starring Dixie the Donkey, this new campaign follows the great response the leading hotel group received for its 2018 campaign – ‘Feel Like a Kid Again’ featuring a flurry of naughty goats.

Six pub chains with a combined estate of nearly 900 pubs are to partner with Screach, the first streaming service designed and built exclusively for commercial premises.

The rapid uptake – which equates to a 12% surge in Screach’s pub chain customer base in just a month – comes after the platform began live streaming sports content into British pubs.

A growth in enquiry levels for 2020 will allow the business meetings and events industry to start the new year with optimism after a challenging 2019, says the Meetings Industry Association (mia).

According to figures gathered for the latest edition of miaTouchstone, enquiry levels rose by 5% in 2019 compared to the same period in 2018.

The profile of the modern-day whisky drinker has been revealed and – despite what you might think – it’s not an older person from Scotland.

UK-wide research from YouGov reveals our palates are refined enough to appreciate Scotland’s national spirit earlier than you might expect, with 84% of UK whisky drinkers stating that they started to enjoy whisky before the age of 31.

Hogs Back Brewery is reprising its successful ‘Support Your Local, Go TEA Total’ campaign in January, with the aim of encouraging more consumers to support their local at the pub trade’s quietest time of year.

‘Go TEA Total’ ran for the first time in January this year, when more than 150 pubs displayed the campaign pumpclip wobblers or posters. For 2020, Hogs Back is building on the campaign with more impactful assets to create standout in participating pubs, a competition to find the TEA Drinkers’ Pub of the Year, a ‘TEA Total Thursday’ initiative, advertising in Hogs Back’s Surrey heartlands and a social media drive.

Meat Alternative Loved By Vegans, Expected To Go Mainstream In 2020 

Jackfruit has been unveiled as the tastecard Taste of the Year 2020 as both professional chefs and consumers across Britain predict 2020 to be the year of the meat alternative.

In two separate surveys, jackfruit topped the polls as the food both consumers and over 300 professional chefs and restaurateurs expect to see explode on to the high-street restaurant scene next year.