Brewdog sells Scottish forest as business faces mounting losses and rewilding group steps in

Brewdog has sold the £8.8 million Kinrara Estate, a Scottish forest the company acquired only five years ago, marking a pivotal shift in its financial and environmental ambitions. The Aberdeen-based brewery originally purchased the former grouse moor in 2020, touting plans to create the largest forest in Scotland and significantly bolster its net zero credentials.

The venture was expected to see millions of trees planted in a transformative effort funded in part through sales of Brewdog’s Lost Forest beer. Initial expectations were high, with founders James Watt and Martin Dickie aiming to turn the site into a flagship project and achieve world-first carbon negative status for their brand. However, early attempts at reforestation faltered, as the first wave of tree plantings failed to thrive, leading to criticism of the company’s environmental claims.

When the estate’s true size came under scrutiny, Brewdog admitted that Kinrara encompasses 9,142 acres, not the 12,000 acres initially claimed. Projections about the site’s annual carbon absorption were also revised downwards. These setbacks coincided with a period of financial strain for the company, which posted a £37 million loss in the most recent financial year, its fifth consecutive year in the red.

This latest move sees Brewdog hand over Kinrara Estate to Oxygen Conservation, a company specialising in natural capital investments and rewilding initiatives. Oxygen Conservation, now in possession of 12 estates covering 50,000 acres across the country, said that Brewdog’s efforts at Kinrara were challenging but far from a total failure, noting improvements above expectations amidst considerable difficulties typical of woodland creation projects.

Brewdog’s repositioning comes after a turbulent period, with the loss of nearly 2,000 pub partnerships, a substantial hit to distribution, and leadership changes as both founders stepped away from the business. The sale of Kinrara signals renewed focus on brewing as the company navigates a path back to profitability, all while the UK leisure and hospitality sector contends with rising costs and ongoing market shifts.

For Oxygen Conservation, Kinrara represents another asset in its growing portfolio, with carbon credits from restored landscapes increasingly in demand from businesses looking to offset emissions. The handover marks a notable moment in the intersection of corporate sustainability pledges and the commercial realities shaping modern British industry.