The Cuban content creator Ady Machín (@adymachin23) posted a video on TikTok this Thursday in which she demonstrates how she is preparing to face the crisis currently affecting Cuba, with a larger-than-usual monthly grocery purchase to establish a family reserve.
"Cuba is going through a very difficult situation, and today I am going to show how I am preparing for what is to come", says Ady at the beginning of the video, filmed during his morning routine while drinking coffee with milk, making the bed, and putting clothes in the wash.
The decision to increase the monthly purchase is part of a planning strategy in the face of uncertainty. "Today I received the monthly purchase we make, but this time we wanted to make it a bit larger to have a reserve," she explains. "This gives us a little peace of mind while we continue to see prices rise and life becoming increasingly complicated."
Ady does not shy away from the reality that millions of Cubans face, who do not have the same ability to plan for themselves. "There are many people who struggle each day to obtain the basics and still can't, and that is something we must always remember," he states in the video.
His testimony reflects a Cuba in an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. According to data from April 2026, 97% of Cubans have lost access to basic food, 89% live in extreme poverty, and seven out of ten people skip daily meals. The cost of living exceeds 40,000 pesos per month compared to an average salary of only 6,000 pesos.
The energy crisis further exacerbates access to food. Cuba has gone more than three months without receiving sufficient fuel, which has left about 200 containers with food supplies, kitchen kits, and water purification systems stuck in ports. One million people rely on tanker trucks to access drinking water.
The UN launched an Enhanced Action Plan in March 2026 with a budget of 94.1 million dollars to assist approximately two million people in 63 municipalities, describing the situation as a crisis with affecting health, water, food, education, transportation, and telecommunications.
In this context, TikTok has become the main platform for testimonies from Cubans living on the island. Other creators have documented weeks without bread distribution in the bodegas, empty official markets and what can be purchased, and what can be bought with 5,000 pesos: hardly any rice, spaghetti, and some chicken.
For Ady, routine and organization are a form of daily resistance. "For me, preparing the house, organizing food, and having something set aside is simply a way to take care of my loved ones as much as possible while trying to live day by day without letting uncertainty paralyze me," she notes.
"This purchase and this routine are my way of maintaining stability and organization, of feeling that I am doing something concrete in response to the situation, step by step," concludes the creator, whose video accumulated more than 21,400 views in less than 24 hours.
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