NJ Jumps Into the Wine Distributor Protection Racket
Stings on illegal wine shipments lead to $22,000 in fines.
The headline of a recent story at NJBiz reads: “NJ cracks down on illegal alcohol shipments from out of state”
The headline on the press release from the New Jersey Attorney General reads: AG Platkin, Division of Consumer Affairs Announce Administrative Actions Against Nine Out-of-State Retailers Following Investigation Into Unlicensed Sales of Alcohol in New Jersey
There are a few things that need to be said about the sting operation undertaken by the NJ Attorney General’s Division of Consumer Affairs and the NJ Alcohol Beverage Control agency. The first is this: This action taken against out-of-state unlicensed retailers and wineries does nothing to protect the health and safety of New Jersey residents. However, it does a great deal to protect the financial interests of New Jersey retailers and wholesalers, while screwing NJ wine consumers.
Kirstin Krueger, New Jersey’s Interim Director of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, says the following:
“The enforcement actions announced today not only protect the public from potentially unsafe alcohol and deter sales to underage individuals; they also send a clear message that anyone attempting to ship alcohol in New Jersey without a license will be held accountable.”
She’s incorrect. Unsafe alcohol is not sold by any of the nine companies they caught shipping into New York. Moreover, minors do not use online channels to purchase alcohol. A correct rendering of the sting operation that Ms. Krueger helped undertake would be more accurately described this way:
“The enforcement action announced today not only protects our New Jersey retailers and wholesalers from competition, but also upholds a law that prevents New Jersey consumers from accessing wines they cannot find locally.”