The official press celebrated this Thursday the operation of the 28 de Enero state poultry farm, in Pinar del Río. A production of 49,000 eggs per day, 61,144 chickens and chickens, and a computer that monitors “feeding, ventilation and waste collection” of the animals day and night, he assures Cuban debate, a “perfectly synchronized gear.” The problem, however, is that this is a rare case in a country affected by the lack of eggs and the severe lack of inputs for their production.
There is another exception, also in Pinar del Río: the UEB Miguel Cabañas, not far from 28 de Enero, is one of the 30 poultry farms in that province. However, Hurricane Ian, in September 2022, drove out the industry, which after the storm lost 4,000 chickens – almost all of them in the process of evacuation – and which now has 53,000 animals and only one warehouse standing. , of the 11 I have.
At low levels of production and despite the “setbacks” its administrators say, UEB Turcios Lima, also from Pinar del Río, has 35,000 birds. However, the managers regret that there is not enough waste, the product made from rice husks that they feed to the chickens, in addition to feed. The one currently in use comes from Sancti Spíritus and “doesn’t meet the demand,” they said. There is also no money, they added, to buy zeolite or wood chips, alternatives to feed the animals.
The cost of egg production is 5.60 pesos, said the official, while it is sold at 2.08 pesos in warehouses. This discrepancy “caused the company millions of dollars in losses”
Food shortages have serious consequences. Due to a “vitamin deficiency problem,” a Turcios Lima technician explained after several turns, the chickens died. However, he assured that medicines and supplements are applied to the children to reduce the death rate.
In addition to the health problems of the animals, the list of deficiencies that affect the entire production is extraordinary: no food, but also no fuel or inputs to achieve the basic comfort conditions for the hens, whose egg production experienced a drop. .brutal fall for these reasons.
The country will need double the number of animals – and for them to lay twice as many eggs – to achieve satisfactory productive performance, estimates Jorge Luis Parapar, president of the Food and Poultry Business Group.
Asked about the part he had to guarantee the basic basket, Parapar excused himself, assuring that all the products were greatly affected by the “effects of the blockade” and “economic situation.” The cost of egg production is 5.60 pesos, said the official, while it is sold at 2.08 pesos in warehouses. That difference “caused the company millions of dollars in losses,” he complained.
Parapar commented on the situation in the informal market, which he described as a “very difficult task.” He assured that producers secretly have “open farms in intricate areas, where sometimes strict control can be quite difficult.” He knows, he said, that the price of a carton of eggs is 3,000 pesos, currently.
After all, the national agricultural program was “designed by Fidel”, and is a proof of difficulties, including the “tense situation” of the ‘blockade’
As confirmed 14 intervene This Thursday, it costs 100 pesos for just one egg. He also did not mention the online stores that Cubans should use, through their immigrant relatives. Supermarket23, one of the most requested markets, also sells a carton of 30 imported units this Thursday for $9.89.
To guarantee an acceptable level of production, the first variable to eliminate is the cultivation of feed, which the farmers want to sell themselves – after going through many difficulties – to the population. If the State wants to intervene to solve these deficiencies, it should acquire “fuel, transgenic seeds, fertilizers, pesticides and cutting technology that are not currently available,” the Parapar listed.
If these conditions are met, “we will be able to satisfy the demand and have 10 or 15 eggs per month per consumer as before,” said the manager. However, Parapar urges readers to Cuban debate with confidence: after all, the national agricultural program was “designed by Fidel,” and is proof of difficulties, including the “tense situation” of obstruction.
Parapar dedicated a section to the characteristics of Cuban chickens, which are “very sensitive and prone to stress.” The fuel crisis caused feed to arrive late to the farm, affecting “egg laying.” However, even if they perform less, “they eat the same amount of food,” he lamented.
There are chickens that are almost “decrepitude” and are used in the country for food. The “old people”, insists the manager, do not have the performance that his company expects from them, and half of the animals in it are in those conditions.
“Sometimes you add fuel at two or three in the morning, and when you arrive at the factory there is no electricity, then you wait three or four hours to continue the production process. On the other hand, there is a It’s not a good time to raise chicken because the sunlight is shortened and the chicken is a photoperiodic animal,” was his last complaint.
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