MÉRIDA, Mexico.- This year, when there are just a few days left for the christmas celebration and others for the end of the year celebration, pork has reached a higher price than it did in December 2023, when Cubans paid between 500 and 600 pesos (CUP) per pound of meat.
This product, one of the most defendants At this time, because it is the main ingredient in the Christmas dishes that Cubans prepare for the December celebrations, it is now sold at approximately 1,000 pesos per pound.
Boneless pork leg, packages of boneless pork chops and boxes of chops reach exorbitant prices in the market informal and also in online stores such as Supermarket23 and Katapulk.
A survey conducted by CubaNet On Facebook, it collected opinions from Internet users from various locations who confirmed that in 2024 it will be difficult to aspire to have pork as the center of Christmas dinner.
A Cuban woman claimed to have seen the pound between 950 and 1,000 in Old Havana, while in Alamar a Cuban found it at 1,000.
“We poor people in this country can no longer eat meat,” he wrote.
In Marianao, however, a person paid 1,200 per pound a week ago.
Prices vary depending on the provinces and the market where they can get the meat, since there is a shortage of pork in state markets.
In Guantánamo, an Internet user recognized that the price was between 700 and 650, similar to what is offered in state-owned stores in Las Tunas.
There, pernil costs 750 per pound; the loin, 750; ribs, 700 and shoulder 730.
In Caibarién, Villa Clara, Cubans claim that it sells for 650 with butter and bone, but clean it costs 1,000 and in Mayabeque, Quivicán municipality, it ranges from 1,000 to 1,300 per pound on the black market: “Because in the state there is no pork or any opportunity to buy.”
“Sad reality. The month of November ended and nothing of the so-called basic basket; The first fortnight of the month of December passes and they have not given any of the so-called basic basket, so what are we talking about, how long have we been buying rice at 200 pesos per pound, sugar at 600 pesos? After fighting so much to ensure a retirement, today it is not enough for us at all, this is very strong, we only have to resist,” wrote a forum member in the comments to the publication. of our Editorial Team.
What will Cubans eat at Christmas?
A analysis of the value of this meat, carried out by the independent media theTOUCH Based on data obtained through daily observation in a group of about 40 formal market establishments, distributed in 11 municipalities of Havana, it yielded chilling results.
Pork steak sells for at least 1,400 pesos; smoked loin with bone, at 1,100 pesos; the smoked boneless loin, at 1,134 and the boneless leg, at 919 pesos per pound.
The Cuban minimum wage, established at 2,100 CUP, would only be enough for almost one kilogram of steak per month, without considering any other expenses, not even payment for services.
The monitoring carried out by theTOUCH reveals that near the end of December, pork, which is (or was) one of the main foods for Cubans and part of traditional dishes, is only for a few.
