GREG Pilley, owner of Stroud Brewery in Thrupp, said: “It is a great shame on so many levels.

“Our business and economic results is only a part of it.

“Malting barley prices are linked to global wheat prices, so as pound fluctuates this will have an effect.

“Certainly our growth was entirely enabled by the EU grant we received.

“We are a business that is very closely linked to agriculture, and this is an area that benefited most from EU membership.

“We do very little export, but it was an area we were looking to grow.

“Our exit will make it harder to send goods into Europe.

“As a father of two young children, it is clear that the vote went totally against the wishes of the youth, so I am disappointed for them as well.”

“The EU definitely had its faults, but working constructively and collaboratively towards a common good underpinned the EU experiment and was a worthwhile endeavour.

He added: “I feel it was irresponsible to put such a huge decision to a public that has not the capacity to consider the real costs.

“By this I’m not entirely suggesting that the public are stupid, but the issues are so complex that most of us with day jobs have not got the capacity to really understand the consequences.

“What is clear is that the unpicking and future politics in UK has been given a real stir, and we are going to have to be vigilant and engaged with the political choices that face us.”