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| Our Meal at the Cooperative |
My time in La Habana, Cuba has been truly extraordinary and eye opening. I can say that Cuba has nothing like what I expected it to be. During my visit I have had the opportunity to visit some amazing places and speak to various Cuban citizens of various backgrounds, age, and occupations about various issues that affect Cuban society such as poverty, education, and healthcare. I feel that there is a lot the United States could learn from Cuba especially in the areas education, healthcare, and organic farming.
On Wednesday the group had the privilege of being able to visit and tour the Organic Agricultural Urban Cooperative of Alamar. I was amazed in the achievements this cooperative has done in the field of organic farming. On this farm they grow various vegetables, herbs, fruits, fruit trees, and decorative plants. In the entire farm they don’t use a single gram of chemicals. The cooperative even creates their own pest repellents using only natural/organic components and they also reproduce many species of insects that naturally help keep the crops pest free. For fertilizer they create their own fertilizers varying from manure, hummus, and compost.
I also found very interesting that unlike the United States where organic produce tends to cost more than “regular” produce which often tends to keep people from buying organic, in Cuba the organic produce in priced cheaper than the inorganic produce in order to encourage the population to eat organic produce and by doing so Cuba is helping its citizenry live healthier lifestyles. I believe that it would be highly beneficial for the United States to consider doing something along those lines so they can help people of all social classes live a healthy lifestyle.
After the tour of their facilities the cooperative director offered us a great meal consisting only of produce that had been grown in their farms. The meal consisted of pineapple, mango, beans, vegetable soup, bananas, cucumber, Chinese cabbage, lettuce, and fresh mango juice. I can honestly say that out of all the amazing meals that we have had in our time in Cuba that the one at the organic farm was the best and the healthiest.
I hope to see something similar to this cooperative in the United States, especially in Nebraska. I feel it would be a great way to encourage everyone to eat organic foods and live healthier lifestyles.
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On Wednesday the group had the privilege of being able to visit and tour the Organic Agricultural Urban Cooperative of Alamar. I was amazed in the achievements this cooperative has done in the field of organic farming. On this farm they grow various vegetables, herbs, fruits, fruit trees, and decorative plants. In the entire farm they don’t use a single gram of chemicals. The cooperative even creates their own pest repellents using only natural/organic components and they also reproduce many species of insects that naturally help keep the crops pest free. For fertilizer they create their own fertilizers varying from manure, hummus, and compost.
I also found very interesting that unlike the United States where organic produce tends to cost more than “regular” produce which often tends to keep people from buying organic, in Cuba the organic produce in priced cheaper than the inorganic produce in order to encourage the population to eat organic produce and by doing so Cuba is helping its citizenry live healthier lifestyles. I believe that it would be highly beneficial for the United States to consider doing something along those lines so they can help people of all social classes live a healthy lifestyle.
After the tour of their facilities the cooperative director offered us a great meal consisting only of produce that had been grown in their farms. The meal consisted of pineapple, mango, beans, vegetable soup, bananas, cucumber, Chinese cabbage, lettuce, and fresh mango juice. I can honestly say that out of all the amazing meals that we have had in our time in Cuba that the one at the organic farm was the best and the healthiest.
I hope to see something similar to this cooperative in the United States, especially in Nebraska. I feel it would be a great way to encourage everyone to eat organic foods and live healthier lifestyles.
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Gabriel Gutierrez
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