BURTONWOOD brewer Thomas Hardy has ensured its growth isn’t just froth by increasing profitability, despite “increasing cost pressures”.

The independent brewer saw sales rise £5.3m to £37.1m in the year to September, 2009 – a 17% annual growth. Turnover has more than doubled in three years.

It improved pre-tax profit levels more quickly, up 22% to £639,000.

Thomas Hardy, which employs about 130 people, brews and packages drinks for customers such as Heineken UK and Carlsberg.

In its directors’ report, just filed at Companies House, it said: “The improved financial performance builds on the foundation laid over recent years. Particularly satisfying is the group’s performance in a time of increasing cost pressure and the UK’s economic downturn.

“Production volumes continued to grow across both the brewing and bottling sectors.”

Thomas Hardy has a brewery and bottling plant at Burtonwood, near Warrington, and in October – after the financial year end – it bought the freehold of a Kendal bottling and packaging plant, which it already operated.

Also in the current financial year, it reached an agreement in principle with a new customer which it said will contribute to the financial performance of the group in 2010.

Emoluments for the three directors – Peter Ward, Rae Ward and Neil Voss – totalled £1.36m, with the highest-paid receiving £782,000.

Mr Ward founded the company in 1997 and in 1998 formed a joint venture company with Burtonwood Brewery to manage the company’s brewing operations. It bought the plant in 2005, while the pubs business is now part of Marston’s PLC.