More than 11,200 children in the province of Matanzas have been deprived of milk in the last week due to the blackout that left all of Cuba without electricity for five days, according to official sources.
The collapse of the national electrical system made it impossible to distribute milk in the western province, as it prevented the food from being refrigerated before its industrial processing, authorities revealed on Wednesday.
Eddy González Hernández, general director of the Provincial Dairy Products Company, declared to the official newspaper Girón that “the main issue is that due to the lack of electricity for cooling the milk in the collection network, it arrives at the factory in conditions not suitable for its pasteurization process and subsequent distribution.”
The official stated that, for this reason, the milk "becomes sour and cannot be consumed."
The child population in the municipalities of Matanzas, Colón, and Cárdenas was the most affected by the failure to deliver milk, González reported.
The day before, specifically on the Peñas Altas route in the provincial capital, the milk that was supposed to be distributed did not arrive, leaving 600 liters pending delivery, he said.
For this Wednesday, it was announced that around 15,370 liters of milk were expected to be received, and it was assured that "as a strategy," the company would start distribution along the "affected" route, that is, Peñas Altas.
However, González clarified that the distribution of milk depends both on the volume collected and the quality with which it arrives at the industry.
The leader claimed that "at this moment the country does not have powdered milk to replace the existing shortage." He stated that the reserve they had available in the province, estimated at half a ton, was decided on Tuesday to be "distributed to the neighborhoods or routes that were affected for five consecutive days."
In the case of milk, the collapse of the electrical system in the country aggravated a long-standing problem that has affected children (up to seven years old), the elderly, people on medical diets, and pregnant women throughout the country, due to repeated failures in the distribution of the product in the basic basket.
During the general blackout in Cuba, which lasted for five days, families were unable to access a supply of basic food items in the stores and other state establishments.
On top of that, when the situation became extremely critical, in thousands of households the food supply - especially meat products - spoiled due to lack of refrigeration.
Despite the fact that the National Electric System (SEN) was synchronized this Tuesday, it does not mean that blackouts in Cuba will come to an end. The forecast for power cuts this Wednesday is 1,042 MW during peak hours.
What do you think?
COMMENTFiled under: