According to a statement by SIBA Chief Executive James Calder the CO₂ shortages could come as an extra worry for small independent brewers who have switched to bottled and canned beer during Covid.

 “The vast majority of small breweries produce fresh cask beer – and for those brewers this latest shortage of CO₂ won’t have an immediate impact – but for the increasing number making keg, bottled or canned beer it will come as an additional worry. Two thirds of the beer that small independent brewers produce is sold as cask beer, which has a naturally occurring carbonation and does not rely on added CO₂, but as more and more brewers have shifted production to bottled and canned beer to capitalise on drink-at-home sales during Covid the impact could be greater than in the past. The shortage comes as an additional and unwelcome challenge for small brewers trying to recover from the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.”