Stroud Brewery’s award-winning beers and community-first approach are earning recognition far beyond its roots.
The brewery’s IPA India pale ale has just been crowned Best Organic Beer in the UK at the Soil Association’s prestigious BOOM (Best of the Organic Market) Awards. Simultaneously, the business was honoured with the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Award at the C2S Southwest Business Awards celebrating it as the region’s most outstanding example of business as a force for good. These twin accolades celebrate both the brewery’s dedication to creating high-quality organic beer and its deep commitment to social and environmental responsibility.
The BOOM Awards run by the Soil Association (which is the UK’s leading organisation and certifying body for everything organic) recognise innovation and excellence across the UK’s organic sectors, including food, farming, beauty and fashion. Stroud Brewery’s IPA impressed judges with its mix of tropical fruit flavours, and its packaging which playfully suggests organic and using biodegradable and compostable labels made from wood pulp sourced from managed plantations. Stroud Brewery was the first one in the UK to switch from oil-derived plastic labels. The brewery’s Tom Long amber ale was also Highly Commended in the same award.
Just a few days previously, the C2S Southwest Business Awards, which honour business achievement, innovation and leadership from Worcestershire to Cornwall, highlighted Stroud Brewery’s exceptional social impact, naming it the region’s CSR champion and beating 5 other companies. The brewery also received a Highly Commended in the Medium Business of the Year category for its strong commercial performance and success.
Founder Greg Pilley and the team say they are thrilled by the recognition. “We’re so grateful to the judges of both awards,” said Greg. “These wins are a huge boost, not just for the brewery, but for the community of Stroud that helped build it.”
From the beginning, Stroud Brewery has operated with more than profit in mind. Founded on the belief that business should be a driver for positive change, the brewery has embedded environmental and social purpose into its DNA.
This has led to it becoming a community hub: it’s become a hub for community activity with at least 10 community organised events taking place every week in the function rooms, plus the free use of these rooms has enabled charities and community projects to get underway; one has gone on to become international.
The brewery has been a Company Friend of local environmental charity, Stroud Valleys Project, for over ten years; a partnership with Wild Stroud sees this volunteer group bottling the brewery’s beer waste for gardeners to use in environmentally friendlier slug traps; it supports charities with donations of prizes for events and raffles and, in 2024, 8.2% of net profits was donated to local charities and community groups.
The brewery is also proud that the taproom’s a place where many young people have their first work experience. Over 50% of staff are under 24 years old so training is viewed as very important to help equip them with skills not just for working at a brewery tap room but for their future careers.
“Local people’s response and support was beyond what I’d hoped for when I first aired this mad idea of resurrecting Stroud’s Brewery. They got behind me from the first and have been there for us ever since.” Said Greg Pilley, the brewery’s founder and MD.
“They provided the initial investment needed to get the brewery started and invested again to expand the brewery. When our future looked precarious during the pandemic, they raised over £114,000 in a crowdfunding appeal to keep the brewery afloat until the lockdowns ended and we could start trading again.
We’re doing what we can to support it in return. And we love the fact that they also love our beer because, in the end, if people don’t drink our beer, we wouldn’t have a business and we couldn’t do all this other great stuff!”
