Kent's publicans are pulling fewer pints as the credit crunch hits county drinkers in the wallet.

A report by the British Beer and Pub Association found 104 million fewer pints of beer were sold in pubs and restaurants in the UK in the three months ending September 30, compared with the same period last year. The figure represents a drop in pub beer sales of 8.1 per cent.

Thanet-based Alan Moore, south east region chairman for the British Institute of Innkeeping said Kent publicans too were experiencing a "general downturn" which had brought a drop in beer sales.

"It is not a happy story and the downturn is being felt, to varying degrees, " said Mr Moore, who is general manager of the Pegwell Bay Hotel, and the adjoining Sir Stanley Gray pub, at Pegwell, near Ramsgate.

"My own experience is that busy times with functions can give a false picture of things, but at other times it can get quiet. There are pubs closing down because of the general downturn."

But he said that the trade had seen some bright spots, with some pubs finding people wanting to save money on restaurant prices were opting for pub grub instead.

And cask ales, perceived as local and organic, were also doing well at the moment, he said.

He said: "Those places that specialise in cask ales are finding sales are doing well, where a landlord looks after his beer correctly there are people who want to drink it."

Earlier reports had suggested people had turned to buying alcohol in supermarkets to save money, following rises on tax in the last budget, but the BBPA found beer sales in supermarkets and shops have now also declined, with a 6.0 per cent fall in the three months to the end of September.

BBPA chief executive, Rob Hayward, said the credit crunch and the four pence rise in duty on a pint of beer in the March budget had hit beer sales badly.

He said: “The accelerating decline in beer sales is a clear sign of a worsening economy, worried households and weakening spending.

"The downturn has now broadened to affect sales through both pubs and supermarkets. This sales trend is symptomatic of the problems infecting the broader economy."