THE LITTLE-STUDIED SUCCESS STORY OF POST-CRISIS FOOD SECURITY IN CUBA: DOES LACK OF INTERNATIONAL INTEREST SIGNIFY LACK OF POLITICAL WILL?

Abstract

In the early 1990s, industrialised Cuba was plunged into crisis as it lost its major source of food, fuel and agricultural input supplies with the demise of the Soviet bloc. Within a decade, the country had recovered sufficiently to double agricultural production, increase calorific availability by 25 per cent, and maintain a consistent and equitable social food programme. Given the continued shortfall of petroleum imports into the country, this was a major achievement, yet it is little studied or used as a learning example for other nations struggling with food insecurity. This article presents the results of a unique study into Cuban agriculture and its food system at the end of the 1990s, identifying the main mechanisms implemented by Cuba to regain its food security status. It argues that the lack of interest in the Cuban experience by the international community indicates that political bias may be causing us to ignore lessons that could contribute to achieving food security in other countries.