The Costa Rica - United States Cooperation Foundation (CRUSA), the Costa Rican Coalition for Development Initiatives (CINDE), the North American Cultural Center - through its Education USA office, and the United States Embassy yesterday announced five scholarship opportunities for students at Costa Rica's Technical Professional Associations (CTP) and public schools that are part of the Internation...

-- Gulf Coast and Central American Yacht Facilities to Collaborate on Service, Training, Activities Coastal Alabama’s Saunders Yachtworks and Costa Rica- based Marina Pez Vela have formed a strategic partnership that will allow the two full-service yacht yards to capitalize on their overlapping customer bases, announced the Gulf Coast shipyard earlier this month. For Saunders, the af...

A group of Costa Ricans with a passion for science, the environment and surf have been working on a way to replace the polyurethane (a polymer and the fifth type of plastic most used in the world) found in surfboards for another more environmentally friendly material. Surfboards are generally made with polyurethane foam blank, fiberglass and polyester resin. The contamination caused by a surfbo...

Franchises from different countries, business models that start at USD $15,000.00, is what you can expect to find at the Franchise Expo (Expo Franquicia) 2017 that will take place at the Real Intercontinental Hotel, July 26 and July 27. This is the eight edition of this event, the only regional fair of its kind. The fair brings together franchises from Mexico, United States, Spain, Central Amer...

Got rice? Costa Rica consumer groups hope its locally grown, and are pushing for price subsidies to stay in place to support local farmers. The National Federation of Consumers (Fenasco) urged the President of the Republic Luís Guillermo Solís to maintain price subsidies for the country's basic staple, rice, and to not cede to pressures from organizations, companies or business chambers to roll...

Last week, Costa Rica hosted a meeting of the Central American Council of Tourism at which ideas were discussed to promote tourism investment in the region, said the Costa Rican tourism Institute (ICT). Central America's Tourism Ministers, businessmen and representatives of the region's tourism chambers participated in this first "Forum of Exchange of Experiences for the Promotion of Tourism In...

Coffee from Finca don Antonio, in Copey de Dota which is cultivated at between 1,800 to 2,200 meters above sea level, reached a record price of up to USD$8,060.00 per quintal (100 lbs or 46 kilograms) in the electronic auction organized by contest Taza de la Excelencia (Cup of Excellence), organization headquartered in Portland Oregon; while in the New York stock market the price reached $123.80 p...

The construction sector in Costa Rica has shown signs of recovery, the creation of new jobs in this area is one of the main signs, employment grew by 5.17% in the first trimester of 2017 in comparison with the last trimester of 2016. According to data by the Costa Rica Statistics and Census Institute (INEC), provided by the Costa Rica Construction Chamber, the growth represented 6,540 new jobs,...

National Geographic Kids and LEGO City are collaborating on a special partnership to inspire children to explore, discover and learn about jungles and the importance of their preservation. As part of the initiative, LEGO City & National Geographic Kids will launch an exciting new competition on July 1 to win a National Geographic Family Expedition to the jungles of Costa Rica in Central Ame...

This week, Costa Rica hosted the XLIX Meeting of Heads of State and Government of the Central American Integration System (SICA, its initials in Spanish) during which a concrete step forward on border control cooperation with Panama was taken, announced the Costa Rican President's office. Presidents Luis Guillermo Solís of Costa Rica and Juan Carlos Varela of Panama signed an agreement to creat...

In April, a Costa Rican woman, Eugenia Cartín, said a call she had made to complain about her Internet service with Tigo had been released on social media, and had caused her immense emotional strife and also affected her professional work as a translator, according to reports in local media. During the 15-minute call, apparently Cartín used very strong language. In the aftermath of the publ...

Merck Sharpe and Dohme will establish a regional center for financial services in Costa Rica to support the company's operations in Latin America, reported Costa Rica's Foreign Trade Ministry yesterday. Foreign Trade Minister Alexander Mora congratulated and thanked the company for its trust in Costa Rica. "Costa Rica has a recognized track record as a competitive destination for companies lik...

The Costa Rican Chamber of Tourism (CANATUR, its initials in Spanish) sent out a notice to canopy tour operators in the country this week regarding an apparent expiration of the canopy patent, but the relief appears to be short-lived. For weeks, uncertainty has reigned among the industry since Canadian national, Darren Hreniuk, began attempting to charge canopy tours royalties based on a recent...

The Chamber of Exporters of Costa Rica (CADEXCO, its initials in Spanish) said it is concerned about the stagnation in exports in the country's priority sectors, according to reports in Central America's Summa business magazine this week. The agricultural sector, which represents 28 percent of the country's exports and is the largest employer in rural areas, has shown no growth this year compar...

The Costa Rican company Go Pato will launch their new drone delivery service “Go Pato Now” on June 26, the express service already has the authorization to operate provided by the Civil Aviation Direction. Go Pato is a messenger / personal assistant service that delivers packages around the country but also shops for things you may need and you don’t have the time to get yourself or you simply ...

The Seattle, Washington-based Starbucks is celebrating five years of operations in Costa Rica this week, and has announced its continued expansion both locally and in the rest of Central America. The chain has 35 stores in the region with 11 in both Costa Rica and El Salvador, seven in Guatemala, and six in Panama. Starbucks' first outlet in Costa Rica opened at Avenida Escazú. This year it ...

To strengthen the country's national strategy on low carbon livestock (a program referred to with the initials ENGBC in Spanish), the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) and the National Institute of Learning (INA) have joined to enhance the country's sustainable livestock production with more resources. Mauricio Chacón Navarro, manager of the national livestock program and coordinator ...

Costa Rica will see the growth of gourmet coffee and chocolate options with the expansion of Britt outlets. "Britt, besides being a gourmet brand of coffee and chocolates, is characterized by the high level of service that strengthens the creation of memorable experiences. The Britt Chocolateries try to instill a taste for good chocolate. We have seen that the customer who already consumes our ...

This week, Costa Rica embarks on a high-level tour in Japan to seek new markets for investment, trade and technical support to build capacity in Costa Rica, said the Costa Rican Investment and Development Agency (CINDE). "Strengthening trade ties with Japan is part of our government's efforts to diversify our economy. This work tour involves ... the promotion of investment, events with potentia...

Jorge Mario Marín, legal representative of the inventor of the canopy and its patent holder in Costa Rica, responded to a recent announcement by the Costa Rican Chamber of Tourism (CANATUR) in which they said they would follow on the recent court ruling that returned the patent to its inventor. "We find it very unfortunate that the authorities of the National Chamber of Tourism (CANATUR) have i...

The Butterfly Palace & Rainforest Adventure in Branson, Missouri announced big plans for increasing conservation efforts for butterflies in 2017, including a major land purchase in Costa Rica. “We are committing $90,000 over this next year to help save butterflies and the rainforests they call home,” said Butterfly Palace owner, Bruce Herschend, in a press release. The money will go towa...

The Ministry of Education of Costa Rica (MEP) registers more than 500 private education institutions in the country; the large number of options can make picking the right school for your kids quite a challenge, that’s why today (Saturday,June 17) EKA Business Magazine is presenting the Private Schools Fair at the National Stadium. The entrance to the fair has a cost of only ¢1,000 (under $2), ...

Costa Rica's Imperial Silver has launched the sale of its beer in the U.S. state of Colorado and the makers of Cerveza Imperial will join hands with statewide water conservation campaigns as part of its larger commitment to environmental sustainability, reported the company to Businesswire. “We have committed to a revolutionary concept of being the world’s first and only ‘water positive’ be...

The Santa Cruz, Guanacaste municipal government swore in a new set of leaders for its environmental commission this week. Representative from 24 local organizations, autonomous institutions, ministries and private sector companies will be coordinating the area's environmental agenda that includes recycling, reforestation, solid waste treatment, and water resource management, among other aspects. ...

A joint Eurojust-Europol press release on Tuesday, June 13, 2017 said a network of payment card fraudsters was dismantled through a cross-border action that led to numerous arrests. The credit and debit card skimming affected some 3,000 people in the EU whose information was then used to make illegal purchases in Costa Rica, Europe and other parts of the world. The victims lost at least EUR 500,0...

On Friday, the Costa Rican tourist board (Canatur, its initials in Spanish) published a statement aimed at unifying canopy business owners and informing them of the legal ambiguities surrounding a recent court decision upholding a Canadian man who has operated the system since the 1990s in Costa Rica patent rights to the canopy technology. Canatur said that a June 15 deadline announced by the l...

How can drinking beer help the environment? Costa Rican-based Cerveza Imperial, the world's first and only water positive beer, has chosen San Diego as one of two markets along with Denver for its re-launch. To spread its water positive concept of "giving more than it takes," Imperial will partner with Surfrider Foundation San Diego, California Surf Museum, Aaron Chang, and various clean-up events...

The Costa Rican Chamber of Industry (CICR) is offering a professional training session on detecting false bills later this month. On Saturday, June 24, 2017, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., those wishing to learn the proper techniques for recognizing false U.S. dollar bills, false Costa Rican colón bills, and/or false Euro bills, can partake in this unique and helpful training. The industry recommend...

In the midst of protests surrounding the growing production of pineapple in Costa Rica, Friday, Costa Rica sent its first shipment of pineapples from the Pacific port of Caldera to Shanghai, China. The nine ship containers containing over 15,000 cases of pineapples marks Costa Rica's entry into the Chinese tropical fruit market, said the Xinhua news agency. "This first shipment of pineapples...

Costa Rican and Azerbaijani chancellors met last week to seek to increase trade, investment, tourism, and cooperation between the two nations, and announced a reciprocal opening of embassies and an agreement on diplomatic visas. Investments by the Azerbaijan Petroleum Fund in Costa Rica were an important part of the talks, said the Costa Rican Foreign Ministry. Foreign Minister Manuel A. Gon...

Costa Rica's legislature will discuss a bill proposing the exploration and exploitation of geothermal energy in the country's protected areas, reported local media recently. Studies carried out by the Costa Rican Institute of Electricity (ICE) estimate potential geothermal energy generation in the country at 875 MW. The current installed geothermal capacity is 195 MW. Bill 19,233, which has ...

An emergency measure ordered by the Costa Rican Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock's National Animal Health Service (SENASA) aimed at controlling a stable fly (Stomoxys calcitrans) outbreak in northern Costa Rica went into effect last week. All pineapple farms in the district of Cutris de San Carlos and San Rafael de Río Cuarto must refrain from any new plantings or soil preparations for the...

The global consulting firm McKinsey & Company, dedicated to helping institutions in the private, public and social sectors achieve lasting success, announced the expansion of its operations to serve new businesses. The announcement was made today during the visit of Luis Guillermo Solís, President of Costa Rica to the firm’s center at Ultrapark II in Lagunilla, Heredia. The center provides global ...

The Costa Rican National Tourism Board, Canatur, met with canopy tour operators from throughout the country this week to discuss a recent court ruling on the patent rights over use of the canopy invention in Costa Rica. Monday, Canadian national Darren Hreniuk, who developed the canopy tour mechanics and invention in the first such tour developed in the country in Monteverde in the 1990s, recei...

- Inventor of the Canopy Tour® recovers invention patent in Costa Rica after lengthy legal battle, meaning local tour operators must receive authorization to continue to offer such tours in Costa Rica. After almost 20 years of wrangling through the administrative and judicial channels in Costa Rica, a legal resolution ended the conflict that arose after the canopy patent held by Canadian national...

While it might be tempting to grab a bag of inexpensive fruit from a street vendor on your next trip to downtown San José, you should think twice about the quality of what you are buying. San José municipal police are amping up their operations in the center to curb informal sales of products along the streets. On a patrol this week, police on bicycle retrieved bags of fruit hidden in storm ...

Starting September 1, 2017, the annual tax on corporations, including inactive - or "shelf" or holding - companies will begin to be collected, said president of the Association of Public Accountants, Ronald Artavia in a statement. The law exempts micro and small businesses from payment; and a one-time exemption is included for the first year of the tax on people who close their companies or tra...

Costa Rica's pineapple sector employs about 32,000 people directly and generates exports of about one billion dollars a year, which is the equivalent of 10 per cent of the country's total exports, according to a report released today. The study, "Economic, Social and Environmental Impact of Pineapple in Costa Rica", conducted by the Central American Institute of Business Administration (INCAE) ...

El Cafetal Corporate Center located in Belén, Heredia, next to the Marriot Hotel, has announced the start of the construction of its second stage, which involves three new buildings. The first stage of El Cafetal has four buildings where companies such as Citi Costa Rica, Cargill Business Services, Deloitte Costa Rica and 3M have established their offices; there is also the commercial area wher...

Costa Rica, May 25, 2017. US-based Okay Industries reinvested US$ 2 million in Costa Rica, which will expand its plant operation and will also acquire new state-of-the-art equipment to manufacture medical device industry parts. Okay industries, located in El Coyol, Alajuela, at Z Free Zone, is a manufacturing company focused on high engineering metal components and assemblies. Its focus on the ...