FDA Waives Fees for Distilleries Producing Hand Sanitizer By Courtney Wallen Winston-Salem SHARE WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Distilleries across the nation making hand sanitizer during the pandemic narrowly escaped hefty fines from the Food and Drug Administration. Winston-Salem’s Broad Branch Distillery started producing hand sanitizer in spring of 2020 to help with increasing demand. The distillery gave sanitizer to first responders, medical workers, schools, and customers for free. “We saw a way to switch over from what we were doing to a production that would help our community, help our state,” says distiller Joe Tappe. “We thought how crazy would it be for them to all of a sudden decide to then charge us this exorbitant fee in a surprise manner, kind of the last minute.”