Thirty years of alcohol monopoly

Prior to 1992, sales of hard liquor were banned in the Faroes.

Special beer clubs requiring a membership were licensed to sell beer, but the only way to access hard liquor was to order from abroad.

At the time, people were issued a so-called alcohol card when they turned 18 entitling them to order up to 12 bottles of hard liquor per quarter from Danish wholesalers.

This system eventually caused concern about Faroese drinking habits, leading to the adoption of the Alcohol Monopoly Act on 10 March 1992.

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Rúsdrekkasøla Landsins, commonly referred to as “Rúsan”, was established to import and sell alcohol, and the first two stores opened in Tórshavn and Klaksvík on 2 November 1992.

Rúsan, Rúsdrekkasøla Landsins

Other important changes were that hotels and restaurants were granted a licence to serve alcohol, and the age limit for buying alcohol was reduced from 20 to 18.

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Another four stores opened in 1993 – in Drelnes, Suðuroy; Skálavík, Sandoy; Miðvágur, Vágar and Saltangará, Eysturoy.

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Store number seven opened in Norðskála in 2015 and number eight opened in Vestmanna in 2017.

Thirty years on, it is safe to say that Faroese drinking habits have become significantly more civilised.

Read the Faroese version of this article here.

Translated by prosa.fo.

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