You have to spend a lot of time before you can get everything you need,” said one of the more affluent families in the Náutico district of the city.
“The rations are enough for rice and sugar, but for other products, they only last five or six days so you have to buy extra. Where to find eggs is a common subject of discussion.
The basic libreta products are guaranteed, but they are not enough – so people often have to travel to several places on several different days to make up the shortfall. Milk is provided for pregnant women and children under seven years of age. This typically provides about 10kg (22lb) of rice, 6kg of white sugar, 2kg of brown sugar, 250 millilitres (1 cup) of cooking oil, five eggs and a packet of coffee per person per month, along with 2kg of meat (usually chicken) every 10 days, a bun every day and a bag of salt every three months. Every Cuban family registers with a local supply store, where they can use a libreta or ration book. With extra rations for children and the elderly, it helps to account for the country’s impressive levels of longevity and low infant mortality.Ī man sells roast chickens along a highway near Artemisa, some 80km (50 miles) west of Havana. The recent rapprochement with the US – which was the island’s main trading partner before the cold war – is also a source of hope for fuller shop shelves.Īfter the 1959 revolution, Cuba adopted a socialist food production and distribution system that ensured a survival level of heavily subsidised food for everyone.
Millions of Cubans have faced similar – or worse – problems for decades, but President Raúl Castro has moved in recent years to change the system with a series of modest market reforms.
“Whenever I travel, my suitcases are full of powdered milk when I return.”
“The hardest thing to find here is milk,” says the 75-year-old, who has played for more than 40 years with Manguaré. This makes a shopping trip an onerous and often disappointing task – even for those like Ramos who have a little spare cash. Regular shortages of milk and other such basic goods underscore the many problems facing Cuba’s centrally planned and US-embargoed economy. A s a percussionist with one of Havana’s oldest and best known bands, Orlando Ramos has toured the world, attended dozens of international festivals and collaborated with a host of stars ranging from Billy Joel to Silvio Rodríguez.īut while musicians from other countries might return from such trips with fine wines, aged whiskies or perhaps even exotic drugs, Ramos’s first priority when packing his bags to go home is something far more fundamental: milk.