Alcohol monopoly

An alcohol monopoly is a government monopoly on manufacturing and/or retailing of some or all alcoholic beverages, such as beer, wine and spirits. It can be used as an alternative for total prohibition. They exist in all Nordic countries except mainland Denmark (only on the Faroe Islands), and in all provinces and territories in Canada except Alberta (which privatized its monopoly in 1993). In the United States, there are some alcoholic beverage control states, where alcohol sales are controlled by either private retailers or like in Pennsylvania, a government operation. An alcohol monopoly also formerly existed in the Republic of China (Taiwan) between 1947 and 2002, when the Taiwan market was opened to overseas brands as part of its admission to the WTO in 2002.