A top Bermondsey beer mile business has barred its staff from touching punters’ glasses because of coronavirus.
Craft beer joint Cloudwater, which has a tap room on Bermondsey’s Enid Street, has instructed staff not to collect glasses from tables unless wearing gloves, and not to touch the rims or insides at all.
Following a virus preparedness meeting last week, the brewery has told staff they must wash and sanitise hands before serving every customer, and that they are not allowed to touch any body part while on-shift.
“The health of colleagues, friends, family, loved ones and the wider community is our main concern,” said the business in a message to customers.
“By maintaining the highest hygiene standards and sharing official advice with our staff and customers, we hope we can play our role in limiting the spread of Covid-19.”
The Bermondsey business fears that any dramatic fall in sales due to a sustained outbreak of coronavirus in the UK would have a ‘catastrophically damaging risk’ to the company.
In the worst case scenario, it said it would be forced to ask for discounts from its landlord and suppliers, but that it was “not in a position to accommodate sustained losses.”
Cloudwater will also cancel any travel to beer events abroad and said that it had noticed an impact on its suppliers who work in areas affected by outbreaks of the virus.
“Though cases are being announced and investigated all around us, we are resisting giving rise to panic or pessimism,” it added.
“Our thoughts go out to the great many people around the world who have lost loved ones, and those that are directly affected by Covid-19.”