Fed-up neighbours say the stench from a brewery is so bad they cannot sit in their gardens - but bosses are urging residents to be more “pro-business”.

People living near South East Bottling (SEB) on Northdown Industrial Estate in Broadstairs have complained of a “yeasty, sickly” smell which can even force them to keep their windows shut.

Such is the pong, Thanet District Council has now ordered the company to carry out an odour assessment.

SEB, which works with brands such as Old Dairy and Tiny Rebel, says it is “unfortunate that in current times, local residents and the council choose to operate in an anti-business manner”.

But Marion Langelier, whose property backs onto the brewery, told KentOnline: “When it smells it interferes with my leisure time. It stops me going out in the garden.

“If the wind isn’t blowing it lingers. It’s like a malty sort of smell.

“When it's sort of strong and it's just hanging around all the time and never clears away it’s annoying.”

Mrs Langelier, 82, says there are also noise issues, notably “banging and crashing” bins.

The factory’s flue pipe is directly behind Matt Walters’ garden. He describes the pong as “abhorrent”.

“If the wind is bad, it’s really sickly,” he said.

“If it's really bad, you can smell it all the way up the road.

“On a bad day, it’s horrible. You can’t stay outside.

“You can't have the windows open if the smell's there because it just blows into the house.”

The 55-year-old admits that the unwelcome whiff has been less frequent recently.

He continued: “It's not like every single day, every single hour. But when it does happen, it is bad.

“I know it’s a local business and I want them to do well - but not at this cost.”

However, the smell does not bother all of those living near the industrial park.

“We are sorry that some local residents find the smell repulsive…”

Chris Prentice, 49, said: “I don’t mind it. It doesn’t stop me sitting out in the garden at all.

“I would describe it as like hot Weetabix. It's quite comforting. It's nice.”

The need for an odour assessment stems from a retrospective application from SEB to install a flue.

Planning officers imposed a condition on them to provide an independent analysis of the smells, which the brewery then tried to have removed.

But TDC refused this, stating: “The failure to submit an odour assessment would result in harm to the amenities of the occupiers of surrounding dwellings in terms of odour.”

Duncan Sambrook, managing director of SEB, said: “We are sorry that some local residents find the smell repulsive. I actually find it very pleasant.

“Ultimately, though, what we are asking for is a compromise with our neighbours to recognise the need to be pro-business for the small impact that our operations may have on their enjoyment of the property.

“We have had an ongoing dialogue with the council, but unfortunately our neighbours have chosen not to engage directly with us, instead preferring to raise complaints through the council.”

Mr Sambrook believes he should not have to address issues surrounding smell, as brewing the beer is allowed within their existing planning permission for the industrial use of the site.

Despite this, when concerns were first raised four years ago, bosses “decided to engage with the council proactively to solve the issues raised”.

Following this, Mr Sambrook says he restricted working hours so that the flue is only in use once or twice a day, up to a maximum of 10 times a week.

He felt they had “reached an appropriate compromise”, but were then asked to provide the odour assessment out of their own pocket.

On rejecting this, he called it “not relevant and unnecessarily costly”.

“I find this to have been completely disingenuous,” he continued.

“Had we known that this would be the outcome we would have just claimed permitted development rights.”

Mr Sambrook says the only way to completely stop the smell is to use a vapour heat recovery system.

These can cost anywhere from £2,000 to £7,000 - a price tag which is “extremely expensive” for the small business still recovering from Covid.

He added: “From the outset, we have sought to engage proactively with residents and the council.

“We have, at our own cost, addressed a large element of the initial concerns, and we do not consider that it is unreasonable for us to be able to operate a flue without restrictions during weekdays between the short windows of operation.”

A spokesperson for Thanet District Council said it fully supports local businesses, but “must balance this with its duty to ensure that regulations are adhered to, safeguarding residents and the environment”.

They added: “As this is an ongoing investigation involving both environmental health and planning enforcement, we are unable to comment further.”