A Cuban farmer from the municipality of Yara, in the province of Granma, has spoken out after receiving a fine of 60,000 pesos, which he claims highlights the obstacles faced by those trying to produce food on the island.
Andrés Manuel Sosa Ramírez expressed his outrage on social media after being sanctioned by the National Center for Livestock Control (CENCOP), citing a "difference in age" between animals that did not meet the category required by the authorities.
"Sixty thousand pesos were imposed on me for an age difference," stated the producer. He claims this figure is disproportionate compared to the actual value of the cattle. "A 500-kilogram bull is paid at the price of a skinny chicken. At most, fifteen thousand pesos, and with discounts, it ends up being less," he explained.
The contrast, he says, is even harsher when compared to food prices in the market. “When a ounce of ground beef costs fifteen pesos at the neighborhood stalls, how much does the bull give and where does that money go?” he questioned, hinting at the lack of direct benefits for those who produce.
Sosa Ramírez not only criticized the fine but also the system that regulates livestock activities in Cuba. In his view, the CENCOP acts more as a mechanism of control than as an institution meant to support farmers. “It is the thermometer that measures the level of submission of us cattle breeders,” he denounced.
The farmer stated that such measures discourage production and directly impact the ability of farmers to sustain their work. “It demotivates us, it discredits us so we cannot raise livestock,” he asserted.
In his message, he also appealed to the social role of farmers amidst the food crisis the country is facing. "What we seek is the common good, for the people to have, for the people to be fed," he expressed.
His testimony adds to the growing complaints from Cuban producers who face strict regulations, low collection prices, and economic sanctions, in a context where food scarcity continues to severely impact the population.
"This is not a way to produce," summarizes the sentiment of many in the Cuban countryside, where farming or raising livestock increasingly feels like an act of resistance rather than a sustainable activity.
In March 2026, the Cuban government set a maximum price of 75 pesos per kilogram for first-category bulls through the Agreement 9845 of the Council of Ministers, which means that for an animal weighing 500 kg, the gross amount would total 37,500 pesos. However, the producer claims that in practice, the payment does not exceed 20,000 pesos before the discount.
This case is not isolated. In Las Tunas, 147 fines were imposed on livestock breeders in just three months—between January and March 2024—for irregularities in livestock records, while during the same period, nearly 2,000 cattle thefts and the illegal slaughter of over 3,000 heads were reported.
In April 2025, livestock farmers in Las Tunas reported constant thefts, unpaid debts for the milk delivered, and excessive fines despite the malnutrition of their animals. That same month, a 71-year-old man sold his livestock out of fear of theft and overwhelmed by the stress of milk quotas he could not meet.
Decree Law 70/2022 establishes fines of up to 20,000 pesos for failing to update livestock records, a legal framework that producers view as a tool for control rather than regulation. The complaining farmer summed it up clearly: "We have parental authority and civil rights, and they trample on them."
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