Cuba's Minister of Agriculture admits the debacle: "The lack of protein is affecting the people."

The Minister of Agriculture of Cuba, Ydael Pérez Brito, reported on the challenges facing agriculture in 2024. According to the official, the country has experienced a significant drop in the production of proteins, poultry, and pork due to the lack of inputs, fuel shortages, and climatic conditions.

Pérez Brito mentioned in the government program Mesa Redonda, in what was intended to be a snapshot of the current Cuban agricultural landscape, that the country does not exceed 200,000 tons of food produced. Similarly, a large part of the pig farming program has been lost, leaving only the genetic preservation of the animals.

On the other hand, egg production has decreased considerably. From producing between four and five million eggs every day, it now only reaches one million two hundred thousand, and that is when the livestock is fed. "We seek alternatives and propose solutions, but this is a program that requires resources," said the minister.

“For example, in the poultry program, four years ago we had eight million hens, including layers, breeders, and replacements. Today we have three million. We have decreased by five million hens in four years,” said Pérez Brito.

"Also, four years ago, we had about 96,000 breeding pigs, which allowed us to provide a significant level of supply to the balances, primarily to the food industry, of more than 150,000 tons of meat. Today we have 26,000 breeding pigs, not in good conditions," he pointed out regarding another sensitive aspect of the Cuban population, which increasingly finds it more complicated to access food.

Another palpable problem is with rice, an essential cereal on the Cuban table, but now it is in depressing numbers. Despite having the capacity to cultivate 200,000 hectares, this year only 60,000 specialized hectares have been planted, illustrating the difficulties faced by production under the current conditions.

The minister explained that although there are 150,000 hectares of crops, only between 25% and 30% can be replanted each year. Additionally, it should be noted that they are currently working with less than 10% of the fuel.

According to the minister's words, Cuban agriculture is at a crossroads: "If we plant all the grains, then we do not have the root vegetables; but we also do not have the conditions prepared to plant grains like soy and corn."

Along with this, there are problems with irrigation, an aging population, a lack of workforce, as well as the unpaid debts that the government owes to producers, issues that intensify the seriousness of the food crisis in the country.