More than 200 kg of meat products are spoiled at the Jobabo Processing Center

In the municipality of Jobabo, over 200 kilograms of meat products became unusable at the Processing Center of the Commerce and Gastronomy Company.

The incident, reported by the municipal broadcaster Radio Cabaniguán, involves technical failures, administrative oversights, and prolonged power outages lasting over 20 hours that are affecting the area.

The center's management explained that the deterioration began with a failure in the cooling system of one of the chambers, exacerbated by the intermittent use of the generator, which did not always have fuel available.

Carlos Labrada Rodríguez, the unit director, acknowledged that, in addition to the electricity deficit, there was human oversight in supervision: "We didn't realize that the refrigerator from the middle back was not cooling."

The lost foods

The list of discarded products includes 42.76 kg of croquette dough, 72 kg of ground beef, 21 kg of boneless meat, 26 kg of mortadella, as well as 13.55 kg of cheese, 22 pounds of shrimp, and 34 pounds of beef, the latter coming from a police seizure that already had preservation issues.

Although some of the items at the front of the refrigerator could be moved to other storage areas or used immediately in production, those at the back were already showing signs of decay when they were discovered.

Health and Hygiene inspectors certified that they were unfit for consumption, and their incineration was ordered.

Reactions and questions

The company's own staff admitted that this is not the first time a similar incident has occurred in the unit.

The underlying issue, acknowledged by Labrada Rodríguez, is why periodic checks are not conducted to prevent basic foods from being lost in this manner, in a country where the population struggles to access protein.

Residents of Jobabo who were aware of the situation commented that instead of being incinerated, those products could have at least been donated to vulnerable families or allocated for animal consumption, thus preventing such a painful waste in the current context.

According to the official, some people, upon hearing about the disaster, went that day to buy meat for their animals. However, the hygiene inspectors stated that, since the level of decomposition was not yet too high, what would happen is that people would end up eating it.

"And then they decided to take him over there, to the stream; that's where they took him, and there they cremated him," he specified.

Consequences for workers and the community

The impact is not just material. The loss affects the financial balance of the entity, with direct repercussions on the salaries of its employees, who depend on the company's results.

But the hardest blow falls on the population, which watches as essential foods disappear while prices soar in the markets and shortages worsen.

A structural problem

The statements from those in charge make it clear that, although they now claim to have enough fuel to start the generator every two hours, the measure comes too late.

The faulty refrigerator, the intermittent supply of diesel, and the lack of supervision reveal a chain of negligence that always ends up in the same place: at the empty table of the people.

The head of the unit himself admitted it: "It's painful that these products have gone to waste, especially given the current situation of the people."

Painful, but above all unacceptable in a country where every pound of meat or sausage is an unattainable luxury for the majority.

Frequently Asked Questions about the Loss of Meat Products in Jobabo