GAF
They recognize the potential of Guantánamo as an exporting province
Guantánamo, as the largest coffee, coconut and cocoa exporting province in the country, has the potential to increase the yields of these items and respond to the growing international demand, in favor of the socio-economic development of the country.
This was recognized by the national director of the Agroforestry Group of the Ministry of Agriculture Elexis Legra Calderin, who emphasized the need to stimulate the men and women who make these productions and other items such as fruits, ginger, aloe vera, coconut oil and cocoa vinegar, to have sufficient quantities to satisfy national consumption and foreign companies. In this sense, she addressed businessmen from different parts of the country who participated in the First National Meeting of the Export Pole, which became a fruitful space for the exchange of experiences and the agreement of business between Cuban entities. Elexis Legra Calderin, national director of the Agroforestry Group of the Ministry of Agriculture, highlighted that the province of Guantánamo is distinguished by the first province to export coffee, by producing more than 60 percent of the Arabica variety in Cuba, in addition to being the largest producer of cocoa and coconut. Guantanamo coffee exporter These results are due to the tradition of sowing and harvesting these items, as part of the culture in this eastern province, an identity trait that highlights the Chocolate with Coffee Festival, created by the Cuban singer-songwriter Waldo Mendoza, adopted son of the territory. The director of Agriculture also insisted on the possibility of increasing coconut yields in Guantánamo, where more than 90 percent of the country's production is reached, despite the damage caused in 2016 by Hurricane Mathew to cocoa plantations. which are gradually recovering and better harvest results are expected in the coming years. As part of the meeting, the National Tasting Event was held, during which Peruvian specialists recognized the existence of excellent quality coffee niches in the Guantanamo territories of San Antonio del Sur, El Salvador and other localities that can compete with the best varieties in the world. Elexis Legr’a Calderin highlighted the training of 20 tasters from the country for their international certification in the next year; or in Colombia, an essential task for the development of Cuban coffee. As the culmination of the National Export Meeting in Guantanamo, the negotiation process for the foundation of a joint venture and an agreement between the Agroforestry Company of Baracoa with a European company to commercialize cocoa continues, results that reflect the growing number of products. Cubans in the international market.
