The Cuban government has announced it will seek to boost national agricultural production, trying to reduce the billions the country spends to buy food on the international market.
The effort is evident in places such as the province of Granma, about 675 km east of Havana. Granma, homeland to some 800,000 Cubans, is a largely agricultural territory and currently the main rice producer on the island, although it cannot meet the needs of a growing market.
Alexander Rojas, a local official from the Ministry of Agriculture, explains that Granma grows all crops to some extent, except for lemons, although rice dominates.
"All this production is undertaken on an agro-ecological basis, since no chemical products are applied," explained the official.
Rojas highlighted the agricultural success of the Omar Rivero cooperative, located in the municipality of Manzanillo.
This cooperative comprises 250 members and is spread over more than 2,000 hectares. It is mainly engaged in the cultivation of sugar cane, although it has diversified its production toward other vegetables, grains, and fruits.
