learn from others, everywhere....cuba's tale

[Guest guest]

" CUBA'S TALE: GLOBAL SURVIVAL DEPENDS UPON WHAT WE EAT: the " crisis " was

the disappearance of Soviet subsidies after the 1989 collapse of the USSR

and the tightening of the US embargo against Cuba that forced the people of

Cuba to adopt a quasi-vegetarian diet. Until then, Cuba had a

sophisticated, petroleum-dependent, agricultural infrastructure that saw

80% of its arable land producing export crops while importing 60% of its

food from Soviet allies - a classic example of globalized food production.

The abruptness with which they experienced the loss of cheap food and

petroleum imports created a socially painful understanding of the

importance of food security.

 

But today, the country is largely food self-sufficient, with 80% of all

agricultural production being organic; that is, food is grown using no

biocides, synthetic (petroleum-based) fertilizers, with low-input,

soil-enhancing alternatives such as crop rotation, diversification,

composting, and green manures. And quite serendipitously, Cubans noticed

improvements to both their environment and to their health.

 

" It was an economic crisis that helped change our whole country, " said

Gilberto at the home of a Canadian friend. " The crisis clearly affected our

food production and health. " He added that the original push is

unprecedented in world history. "

 

[excerpted from:

http://www.globalexchange.org/campaigns/cuba/sustainable/globalSurvival.html