Deficiencies in all sectors, non-payments to producers, lack of fuel and an exodus of the labor force.
HAVANA TIMES If anything became clear this Monday after the analysis in the National Assembly of the performance of the Food Industry and Agriculture so far this year, it is that none of the sectors – very dependent on each other – is progressing at a good pace. No improvement is expected either, since the problems that hit them the most persist: fuel continues to be scarce; wages are insufficient to prevent workers from leaving; and producers, who are owed millions of pesos, prefer not to do business with the State.
As acknowledged by Alexis Rodríguez Pérez, Director General of Economy and Agricultural Development of the Ministry of Agriculture, of the ten fundamental categories, only four have met their targets since 2023 and so far this year: produce, vegetables, corn and rice; whereas, meat, milk and egg productions are in a critical state.
The official warned that “the indices of beef and horse meat production have been affected by the poor organizational work between the companies and the slaughterhouses for the hiring of producers, the insufficiency in the transport of animals to the slaughterhouse due to lack of fuel, the low weight of the animals slaughtered due to the deficit in animal feed and the drought in some territories.”
Of a plan for 20,400 tons of beef for the first half of 2024, only 15,200 were achieved. For pork, only 3,800 tons were reached in the same period, out of the 11,300 projected. The figures are alarming when compared to those of 2022, when, for beef alone, 172,300 tons were produced in the year.
Eggs remained at 94,070,000 units, below the 231,900,000 units agreed. “Other products also reflected the downward trend with respect to the plan: beans, tobacco, milk, coffee, cocoa and honey,” adds Cubadebate without mentioning figu
