New report shows beer brews up billions of dollars for North Carolina's economy

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- A recently released report by the Beer Institute and the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) drafts a picture of the state of beer in North Carolina.

According to the biennial report, North Carolina generated a total economic output of $13.4 billion.

"This really is designed to talk about the linkages and the connections between all of these businesses together. Not so much what's happening at the consumer level. We're talking about aggregate big economic impacts of an industry that contributes about 1.6% of gross domestic product to the US economy," said NBWA economist Lester Jones.

By the numbers, the Beer Saves America report points out that North Carolina is responsible for 71,867 jobs within the beer industry. However, that number does not specifically indicate that each job is solely focused on beer. That figure represents workers in agriculture, retail, brewing, distribution, and manufacturing jobs within the sector.

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In total, an estimated $3.9 billion in wages and benefits is tallied, as is $1.4 billion in total taxes paid.

"What they're really there to drive home is the contributions that brewers, distributors, and retailers make every day to the state of North Carolina," said Jones.

Meanwhile, Brewgaloo organizers said craft beer businesses are still feeling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic response.

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Deep River Brewing Company CEO and founder Paul Auclair said he's seen other breweries struggle with paying back COVID-era loans. For his brewery, he said he's keeping a close watch on his finances.

"(We're) really being strategic about how we spend our money and making sure our cash flow is positive is really imperative to seeing the growth in this industry from all our friends," said Auclair. He can best be described as cautiously optimistic; however, when he looks at the future of the industry in North Carolina and whether the economic impact will increase, the answer is unclear.

"That's a really tough question," Auclair said. "And I'd love to say yes. Over the past 10 years, we've seen tremendous leaps and bounds of different breweries opening up around the state. And it's been a vital part of our economy in North Carolina for many years."