THE future of three Hyndburn pubs hangs in the balance with the news that a brewery is in trouble.
Liverpool-based Cains went into adminstration last week after failing to pay HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) duty charges.
The brewery owns the Last Orders in Blackburn Road, the Bees Knees in St James Street, both Accrington, and the Printers in Oswaldtwistle.
Administrators are working with staff at the brewery and the landlords and staff in the pubs to ensure that they remain open.
Pub managers said they were unable to comment about the situation.
In July HMRC filed a petition to wind up the brewery and owners, the Dusanj brothers, attempted to secure a loan to make payment on taxes.
But this failed and Pricewater-houseCoopers Limited Liability Partnership were appointed joint admistrators of Cains and related subsidaries last week.
Joint administrator Craig Livesey, director at PricewaterhouseCoopers in the North West, said: "Cains is a well-established business with a great brand and brewing facility which has been brewing ales since the mid-19th century.
"Its ales have won a number of awards, most recently the World’s Best Fruit Beer in the World Beer Awards 2007. Cains is also a major supplier of own label beers to the supermarket sector.
"It is currently our intention to continue to trade both the brewery and pub chain businesses and we will seek to achieve going concern sales over the coming weeks and months.
"We have already received some early indications of interest and we would also invite any parties interested in acquiring either the brewery or pub chain businesses to contact us as soon as possible."
