Greene King enjoys record sales over Christmas period

Pub and brewer group's Christmas Day sales jumped more than 12% to £3.1m, serving up 62,000 meals

Greene King's record sales over the Christmas period were boosted by 62,000 meals served up on Christmas Day. Photograph: Peter Huggins/Alamy

Record sales of Christmas meals helped the pub and brewer groupGreene King increase sales over its busiest trading period.

Sales at Greene King's retail business jumped more than 12% to £3.1m on Christmas Day as staff served up 62,000 meals – more than ever before. Trading on New Year's Eve was also strong with retail sales up 10% to £4.5m.

In a trading update, the Suffolk-based brewer said sales at retail outlets open a year or more rose 5% in the last six weeks. Food increased as a share of sales at its Hungry Horse, Old English Inns, Eating Inn and Loch Fyne Seafood & Grill brands.

The chief executive, Rooney Anand, said: "Trading over the important Christmas and new year period has been very strong with all of our businesses performing well, driven by the strength of our seasonal offers and our continued focus on delivering industry-leading value, service and quality to our customers."

Greene King's beers, which include Abbot and Old Speckled Hen, sold well with growth of almost 20% in the past six weeks