Nine representatives have been appointed to serve on the inaugural N.C. Spiritous Liquor Advisory Council created in the 2021 session of the N.C. General Assembly.
Members are:
- Pete Barger of Southern Distilling Company in Statesville;
- Brian Call of Call Family Distillers of Wilkesboro;
- Michael “Mike” Yates of Republic National Distributing Company of Charlotte;
- Meredith McCormack of Beam Suntory of Wake Forest;
- Greg Stallings of the ABC Commission in Raleigh;
- Walter Harris, chairman of the Chatham County ABC Board in Pittsboro
- Joel Keith of the Wake County ABC Board;
- Jason Smith with the N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association; and
- Robert Fleming of Fleming Brothers Farm, LLC in Halifax.
The advisory council was established through Session Law 2021-150 House Bill 890 with the goals of growing the spiritous liquor industry in the state, improving the state’s rank as a spiritous-liquor producing state, raising awareness of the industry and the quality of the products, developing a plan that identifies problems and constraints of the industry and offer advice and recommendations to the Commissioner of Agriculture.
Members must be members of the spiritous liquor industry, at least one representative of the N.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association, at least one representative of the N.C. Association of ABC Boards, at least one representative of the ABC Commission, and any other person selected by the Commissioner of Agriculture.
-aea-1