Brewing and pubs giant Marston’s is creating up to 3,000 jobs over the next two years as the UK shows no sign of losing its appetite for eating out on a budget, it announced today.

Chief executive Ralph Findlay is expecting no slow down in the demand for pub food and dozens of new pubs will be built by Marston’s at a cost of around £60 million a year.

He attributed the success in part to the fact the price of eating out has gone up a lot less than the price of food and groceries at the supermarket.

The Wolverhampton-based company is also working with landlords at smaller pubs, hit hard by the tough economic climate, and is setting up a franchise deal at 600 pubs, a “halfway house” between its 500 managed pubs and the 1,650 it leases to landlords.

By giving the landlords extra support as franchisees, Marston’s believes it can return these pubs to growth and create more jobs.

Mr Findlay said: “By the time we get to the end of the 600, in 2013, we will have made big increase in profitability for the landlords and I think we will have seen 1,000 or so jobs created, down to that programme.”

This will be on top of the 1,000 jobs a year created at the new F-plan pubs – focused on food, families, females and 40-50 year-olds – with 25 due to open every year.

Mr Findlay said Marston’s had recognised early on that food and dining out was becoming increasingly important to pubs, especially after the smoking ban was introduced in 2007.

He continued: “Since 2005 food has gone from 25 per cent of our turnover to 42 per cent, and I think that will continue to grow,” he said.

He added: “Because people like good beer with the meals, serving food has also pushed up our drinks sales at a time when the UK’s beer market is declining.”

The year has seen Marstons achieve record turnover of £682m, while profits were up 9.4 per cent to £80.4m.