They sell spoiled baby food to children in Santiago de Cuba: “Dry and with black spots.”

Damaged baby food is being distributed to children in Santiago de Cuba, raising concerns among parents. Dry products with black spots have been reported in several municipalities, prompting questions about the government's management.

Venden compotas en mal estado en Santiago de Cuba © Collage Facebook / Melitza Turcaz Montalban y Yosmany Mayeta
They are selling spoiled baby food in Santiago de Cuba.Photo © Collage Facebook / Melitza Turcaz Montalban and Yosmany Mayeta

A mother from Santiago reported on Wednesday that the baby food distributed through the ration booklet to children in Santiago de Cuba is in terrible condition.

According to his account, when he opened the containers purchased from the shop in the Los Pinos neighborhood of the main municipality, he found a dry product with black spots that was visibly spoiled, reported journalist Yosmany Mayeta on his Facebook profile.

Facebook Capture / Yosmany Mayeta

"These baby food jars are old, they are dry, and they have black spots," the mother expressed indignantly, not hesitating to take photos of the food's condition to highlight the issue.

The situation is causing concern among families in Santiago, as this type of product is specifically intended for child nutrition.

In light of health risks, Mayeta urged other parents to carefully check the baby food before giving it to their children.

However, this is not an isolated case, as is evident in the comments section. Alberto Arocha stated, “It’s true, many came out in those conditions in my store as well.”

"The ones that my grandson received were also in poor condition," denounced Ivette Sarda Prada.

Melitza Turcaz Montalbán, a resident of the Segundo Frente municipality, noted that "I also went through the same thing," highlighting that the issue was not confined to the main municipality.

Aylin Seguras, referring to the lack of dairy products affecting the child population, expressed: “Poor children, it’s heartbreaking, no milk or anything, and the baby food is going to waste. For God’s sake, how long will this situation last?”

In June, the state-controlled newspaper Sierra Maestra praised the work of the company La Estancia during the latest edition of ExpoCaribe in Santiago de Cuba.

The news portal cited Yuriem Jiménez Sanabria, a specialist in Communication and Marketing, who suggested that the Pillín compotes—the same ones mentioned in the complaint made by the mother from Santiago—are among the company's most sought-after products.

"We use a unique container in various formats to ensure that the final product has a long shelf life," the executive stated.

"One of its main lines is the production of compote for the regulated family basket, under the Pillín brand," he noted.

Last September, a customer publicly reported on social media that the store “La Infancia,” located at 23 and 6 in Havana, refused to withdraw a defective product from sale despite her warning.

Bárbara Lazo Suárez reported in the Facebook group "Gobierno de La Habana" that last Sunday, September 22, she purchased an item at the store, and when she tried it at home before giving it to her grandson, she discovered that the product was in poor condition.

Outraged by the situation, the woman wondered on social media whether it would take a diarrheal outbreak or something worse for the authorities to take action and suspend the sale of spoiled products.

The client expressed her hope that measures will be taken to prevent health issues among consumers: “I hope that the relevant authorities do something about this.”

The economic crisis in Cuba has led to an unprecedented level of indifference, and the sale of spoiled food products occurs frequently.

In July, a resident of the province of Sancti Spíritus reported the poor quality of a yogurt purchased at a fair, which was meant for a child, prompting the Cuban to criticize the regime by questioning, "Do you think this is suitable for a child?"

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