Sala IV voids monopoly of Fábrica Nacional’s guaro
Another icon has fallen. The Sala IV has ruled that guaro produced in Costa Rica by a government monopoly may face competition.
The ruling, released Thursday by the press office of the Poder Judicial, was a narrow one and related only to sugar cane liquor called guaro with an alcohol content of 30 percent.
The action was brought by an importer of alcoholic products three years ago. The magistrates, in their decision, ruled that two decrees were unconstitutional. The decrees were issued by the then-Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería and gave the exclusive right to produce guaro to the Fábrica Nacional de Licores.
The Fábrica Nacional produces Cacique guaro with that percentage of alcohol. The decision would not seem to apply to other products of the Fábrica Nacional nor to other guaros with different alcoholic content. The liquor company produces a range of gins, vodkas and other spirits.
Guaro is called aguadiente de caña in other Latin countries.
The magistrates said that the production of guaro was a legal activity that does not damage the public morals, the public order or the rights of third parties. Consequently the government had no right to give the Fábrica Nacional exclusive right without an objective reason.
Because of the abundance of sugar cane, guaro is bootlegged extensively in Costa Rica and purchased by people who want to avoid taxes on alcohol.