Hunterdon Brewing Co. agreed to pay a $2 million fine, the largest ever imposed by the New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control on a single wholesale licensee for trade practice violations.
The Division alleged that Hunterdon Brewing Company LLC sold draft beer tap systems at below fair market prices and concealed the charges by mislabeling them as “miscellaneous draft charges” on invoices and ignored credit regulation for at least 700 retail customers.
During its investigation, the Division compiled sworn statements from more than two dozen retail licensees and reviewed thousands of documents.
“Fair market prices exist for a reason. The improper trade practices allegedly employed by Hunterdon Brewing threatened to disrupt competition and throw the wholesale industry into disarray,” said New Jersey Attorney General Christopher Porrino. “Consumers suffer when these laws and regulations are ignored. The Division’s actions ensure that New Jersey consumers will continue to benefit from a stable alcoholic beverage industry.”
“Throughout its history, ABC has endeavored to create a level playing field that encourages fair, open and transparent competition,” said Jonathan Orsen, Acting Director of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control. “When a wholesaler utilizes discriminatory trade practices, competition among wholesalers is stifled and consumers lose the benefits which open competition provides.”
Acting Director Orsen said that Hunterdon Brewing’s parent company, Craft Beer Guild, cooperated with the investigation.
The alleged violations and terms of the fine are outlined in the attached Notice of Charges and Consent Order.
The fine is payable in four $500,000 installments over the next year. If required compliance audits show no substantial similar violations, the Division will waive $250,000 of the last payment.