A Cuban identified on TikTok as @maykelcook.cuba published a video showing how to make improvised homemade cheese using the curdled milk that the State allocates to his little nephew, amid the severe milk distribution crisis the island is experiencing.
"In Cuba, there is no fuel even to distribute the little milk for the children, and now that it's being brought in very late and in a makeshift way, most of the time it arrives in a cut-off state," explains the creator at the beginning of the video, published on April fifth.
Instead of throwing out the spoiled milk, the Cuban decided to turn it into a useful ingredient. "Since communism isn't going to starve us, we're going to come up with a way to make cheese with this milk," he says with straightforward humor and no beating around the bush.
The recipe is simple and uses only four ingredients: filtered curdled milk with a fine cloth to remove the whey, a tablespoon of oil, salt to taste, and two tablespoons of cornstarch. The mixture is cooked in a pan until it becomes creamy, then poured into a mold and left to cool in the refrigerator.
To demonstrate that the result is functional, the creator prepares a "disk" — the classic Cuban sandwich — using the improvised cheese. "I'm not going to lie to you, of course this isn't gouda cheese, but hey, for a breakfast it gets the job done, you know," he acknowledges honestly.
The video, lasting only 28 seconds, reflects a structural crisis that has dramatically worsened in recent years. Cuba's milk production has dropped by 65% in the last five years, falling below the levels recorded during the Special Period of the 1990s. Camagüey, historically the country's main milk-producing region, decreased its production from 92 million liters in 2019 to just 41.1 million in 2024.
The shortage of fuel worsens the distribution problem. In several areas, milk transportation is done by bicycle, animal traction, or improvised vehicles such as the "riquimbili," causing the product to arrive late and in poor condition to households. In 2025, the Cuban government only received 30% of the planned powdered milk for import.
The consequences for children have been documented in several provinces. In Santiago de Cuba, children aged two to six stopped receiving milk through the supply booklet. In Matanzas, more than 5,000 children and cancer patients were left without their ration. In Camagüey, nine municipalities reduced the child ration to half a liter daily or one liter every two days.
In December 2024, the Ministry of Domestic Trade officially acknowledged that it would not be able to guarantee powdered milk for all children in the regulated family basket. Months later, in January 2025, the government even offered syrup as an alternative to milk for children.
The video by @maykelcook.cuba is part of a growing trend of Cuban creators who humorously and creatively document food survival strategies on the island. The act of "inventing"—a popular Cuban term for solving everyday problems in the face of scarcity—has found a platform in TikTok that also exposes the situation. "Don't forget to follow me if you enjoy seeing how a Cuban invents in the kitchen," the creator concludes.
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