BrewDog has sold its 9,300-acre Highland forest only five years after acquiring the site as part of its carbon-offsetting ambitions.
The Kinrara Estate, near Aviemore, has been bought by English firm Oxygen Conservation, whose backers include Hearts investor Tony Bloom.
The brewery purchased the land for £8.8million in 2020 and launched the “Lost Forest” project, pledging to plant hundreds of thousands of trees to help achieve carbon neutrality.
However, rewilding efforts faced significant challenges, with an estimated 250,000 Scots pine, around half of those planted, believed to have died.
The company said “the time was right to hand over the reins” to a specialist conservation organisation.
Lauren Carrol, BrewDog’s chief operating officer, told The Times: “Since we became custodians of this magical slice of the Scottish Highlands we have worked with partners to restore 745 hectares of peatland and planted over 375 hectares of new woodland.
"We’re proud of all that has been achieved and of the legacy we leave, but the time is right to hand over the reins to an organisation that specialises in protecting and investing in natural capital.”
The move comes amid financial pressures at BrewDog, which earlier this year announced the closure of ten bars, including its first Aberdeen site. The business has also undergone leadership changes, with both James Watt and Martin Dickie stepping back from day-to-day roles.
Oxygen Conservation, which now manages more than 50,000 acres in the UK, said it plans to build on the project.