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The Business Group of Commerce of Las Tunas suspended the sale of the toothpaste included in the regulated basic family basket this Monday, while quality tests are being conducted on the product, due to the concern raised among the population regarding the expiration dates printed on the packaging.
The announcement was disseminated through the Telegram channel "Bodega Las Tunas" and reported by the Periódico 26 of Las Tunas, which clarified that the measure responds to the concerns raised among the population regarding the expiration date stated on the dental paste containers.
The product in question is the toothpaste Mentifresh, with an antimicrobial formula, cavity protection, and dual refreshment action, available in a 85 mL package, manufactured by Suchel, a Cuban state-owned company with a plant in the Calabazar Industrial Park, in the Arroyo Naranjo municipality, Havana.
The entity acknowledged that the product was supported by a quality extension issued by the Provincial Center of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Microbiology of Las Tunas, valid until May 2026, which initially authorized its distribution in the warehouses of the regulated system.
However, in response to citizens' complaints, Comercio Las Tunas decided to suspend the distribution of the product for the time being and subject it to additional testing.
The institution promised transparency in the results: "The final outcome of these studies will be reported in due time, and actions will be taken depending on the findings," the entity assured.
The episode highlights the growing distrust among the Cuban population towards a common practice in the supply system: the so-called quality extensions, a mechanism by which provincial health agencies officially extend the shelf life of products whose printed expiration date has already passed or is approaching, allowing their distribution within the regulated system.
A history of issues with the supply of toothpaste
Las Tunas has a documented history of problems with the delivery of toothpaste.
In September 2024, the provincial government distributed the product to cover delays from the March-April bimonthly of that year, highlighting several months of delays in supply.
In November 2025, after more than eight months without guaranteed hygiene products since March of that year, the stores only distributed soaps, leading to public complaints from citizens who also demanded toothpaste.
The problem is not limited to Las Tunas. In Havana, toothpaste was also not being distributed through the ration book since March 2024, with attempts to catch up on delays that extended at least until September of that year.
In 2023, the distribution of liquid toothpaste in the basic basket sparked widespread outrage on social media.
And already in 2020, during the quarantine due to the pandemic, the then Minister of Domestic Trade Betsy Díaz Velázquez warned that toothpaste could take up to three months to arrive in the regulated basic basket.
The crisis in the supply of hygiene products reflects the chronic deficits of the Cuban rationing system, worsened by the scarcity of foreign currency, logistical issues, and difficulties in sourcing raw materials that have reduced the production capacity of state-owned companies like Suchel.
The tension between the state's need to distribute products with extended shelf lives and the public's distrust towards expired dates on packaging has become a recurring conflict that the regime has failed to resolve for years.
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