Amidst a heated controversy surrounding the recommendations of a senior leader regarding family fish farming, Las Tunas province authorities have made an announcement. They plan to convert certain areas of an old local factory into ponds in order to raise tilapia.
According to a report from the official broadcaster, Radio Rebelde, these ponds have been created in the maceration areas of the old Makenaf natural fiber sack factory located in the municipality of Jobabo. Urban Agriculture workers, along with a medium-sized non-state-managed company (Mipyme), have initiated the reproduction of cyprinids (carp) and tilapia fingerlings, along with fattened fish. These fish will be destined for health centers, gastronomy establishments, and the population in that municipality. The director of the Base Business Unit, Alfredo Bello Torres, provided details about this initiative.
Torres mentioned that over 40 ponds, each approximately 60 square meters in size, are currently under semi-intensive farming to reproduce fry. The objective of this project is to deliver the first volumes of freshwater fish in October, as stated by biologist Roberto Oduardo.
The report also highlighted that other areas of the factory are being utilized by the Charcoal Company and the Torcido Lázaro Peña Tobacco Factory.
On July 21, Cuba’s Deputy Prime Minister, Jorge Luis Tapia Fonseca, proposed that families raise fish in ponds built in their neighborhoods as a means to improve nutrition. This recommendation sparked outrage among the country’s population, who are currently facing a deep widespread crisis. Tapia proclaimed during a session with the National Assembly that local-level aquaculture had been successfully practiced in Cuba during the 1990s—an assertion that came just a month after the regime had attributed the lack of fish in shops to the scarcity of fish in Cuban territorial waters.
The official’s remarks have been met with skepticism by several Cubans. Even comedian Ulises Toirac openly wondered about the mystery surrounding fishing on the island, where fish consumption has significantly declined in recent years. Rigoberto Ferrera also jokingly commented on the idea of having a pond in order for families to have “their little fish.”
Despite the controversy, the project in Las Tunas province is progressing, and the authorities are determined to meet their target of delivering the first batch of freshwater fish in October.