In the midst of a deep food crisis and a shortage of supplies in the country, the Cuban regime opened the door to transgenic crops as a “complement to conventional agriculture.” According to a television report in the state press, “for next year it is expected to plant 8 thousand hectares of transgenic hybrid corn on the island.”

So far, “during the Spring Campaign, little more than 500 hectares have been planted in the provinces of Matanzas, Sancti Espíritus and Ciego de Ávila,” the report …. states.

According to the information issued, “peasants from the Cooperativa de Creditos y Servicios (CCS) Juan Darias, from the Jarahueca area in the Yaguajay municipality of Esprit, are in full corn harvest.”

“This time the agricultural yield is much higher. The reason is that here it was sown with national seed, a transgenic hybrid corn developed for fifteen years by the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology.”

…

Aldo Fortaín, President of the CCS Juan Darias, said: “we are used to, at most, 1.5 tons and this corn can exceed 5 tons per hectare”.

[Editor’s note: This article was originally published in Spanish and has been translated and edited for clarity.]

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