MP celebrates UK Coffee Week at Arundel’s new Brewhouse Project
Arundel & South Downs MP Nick Herbert highlighted the nation’s love of real coffee with a visit to the newly opened The Brewhouse Project in Arundel.
The Brewhouse Project is a joint business venture owned by Edgcumbes Coffee Roasters & Tea Merchants and The Arundel Brewery. Together they are serving locally produced refreshments from their taproom and café located in the refurbished barn which was formerly Crossbush Farm Shop, on Lyminster Lane.
Coffee is the most popular drink in the world with around two billion cups consumed every. In the UK alone, we drink approximately 95 million cups every day and the industry is estimated to be worth over £9 billion to the economy. Although 80 per cent of households buy instant coffee, many people in the UK still enjoy a freshly roasted coffee from a coffee shop, with 16 per cent of the population visiting one daily.
Edgcumbes is based at Ford, near Arundel, and started business in 1981 when Frank Edgcumbe-Rendle retired as a tea trader in Calcutta and returned to the UK. He began blending his own loose leaf tea which he also sold locally. The family-run business has now expanded to include locally roasted coffee.
The Arundel Brewery is also a family-run business, owned by Samantha and Stuart Walker, known for its production of quality and award-winning craft beers. They have a shop located on the Arundel town quay.
The partnership between Edgcumbes and The Arundel Brewery marries two local businesses with a passion for flavour and hospitality. The taproom and coffee bar is open seven days a week and serves locally sourced food, including pizzas which are freshly made in-house.
Mr Herbert visited The Brewhouse Project shortly after its recent grand opening. He met Chris Rendle and Samantha Walker and was given a tour of the premises. The new landmark has already proved to be popular with returning locals and visitors from outside of the area.
Samantha Walker said: “Chris and I were delighted to welcome Nick to The Brewhouse Project. Nick has closely followed our long journey to get this site converted from a disused farm building into an innovative fresh coffee and fresh beer venue, serving coffee freshly roasted on site and from the nearby Edgcumbes Roastery and beer that is freshly brewed at the Arundel Brewery.
“As a supporter of local business, this new project exemplifies the good that comes about when local people work together, for the benefit of everyone. Money spent at The Brewhouse Project, stays in the Sussex economy, supporting both local people and local suppliers.”
Mr Herbert said: “I was really impressed with the Brewhouse which has a great atmosphere and is already proving very popular. Great new ventures like this deserve the positive encouragement and support of local authorities, as they help to put West Sussex produce on the map and draw in visitors.”
UK coffee week runs between 29 April and 5 May 2019 and raises awareness and money for Project Waterfall, a charitable initiative to deliver clean water, education and sanitation to coffee-growing communities.
ENDS
Notes
1. Photograph: Nick Herbert with Chris Rendle and Samantha Walker outside The Brewhouse Project.
2. To read more about Edgcumbes Coffee Roasters & Tea Blenders see www.edcumbes.co.uk.
3. To read more about The Arundel Brewery see www.arundelbrewery.co.uk.
4. To read more about the UK’s production and consumption of coffee from The British Coffee Association see www.britishcoffeeassociation.org.