Cuban content creator Sisi Aguilera denounced this Friday that eating in Cuba "has become a luxury" due to the rising food prices and the prolonged blackouts affecting families.
In a video posted on Facebook, Aguilera showcased her shopping for the day and noted that she paid 1,450 pesos for a kilogram of sugar and 200 pesos for a bunch of bananas.
He also stated that a pound of rice costs around 330 pesos and that not everyone can afford that price.
"It's no secret, I know it, but it's abusive," the Cuban stated in the recording that lasted just over a minute.
The electricity shortage adds another problem to the cost of food, as Aguilera explained. Prolonged blackouts make it difficult to preserve products in refrigerators and force many families to buy only what they need for the day.
"You are spending more money than usual because since you can't refrigerate the food, you have to buy the basics, and often it goes bad," he explained.
The creator also joked about the fate of the bananas she bought, noting that they wouldn't be used for frying because she doesn't have any oil either. "This is for eating boiled," she stated.
His testimony adds to the citizens' complaints about the rising cost of food and the increasing difficulties faced by Cuban families in securing basic products amid the economic and energy crisis.
The testimony comes amid a surge in prices affecting the entire island, exacerbated by contradictory decisions from the government.
In June, the Ministry of Finance and Prices eliminated the national caps on oil, chicken, powdered milk, pasta, and sausages through Resolution 150/2026.
In July, Decree 156 also lifted the cap on rice, which had been set at 155 pesos per pound since March 2025. Less than two months later, several provincial governments began reintroducing local controls in a disorganized manner, with varying prices depending on the region.
Holguín announced a maximum commercial margin of 30% for basic products, although residents reported that after the announcement the carton of eggs remained at 5,000 pesos and the oil was above 3,000.
Pinar del Río set the price of oil at 2,150 pesos with penalties for violators, while at a fair held on Thursday in Camagüey to commemorate the centenary of dictator Fidel Castro (1926-2016), beef was offered at 600 pesos per pound and one attendee described it as "quite affordable" because "in other places, beef is at 900."
The gap between salaries and prices makes the situation unsustainable for the vast majority. The average state salary between January and April 2026 was 7,074 pesos per month, equivalent to between 13 and 17 dollars at the informal exchange rate.
Independent economists estimate that a person needs more than 70,000 pesos per month just to cover their food expenses. The average salary barely covers 10% of that amount.
The economist Pedro Monreal summarized the cycle of measures and countermeasures of the government with a widely circulated phrase: "176 measures and one single achievement: to show that they learned nothing."
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