Agromercados Legal travel to Cuba
Cuba is a very beautiful land and with its combination of tropical climate and chemical composition of the soil, Cuba grows mostly citrus, mangos and other types of food but they are really limited. But that is not to say that any farmer can cultivate the land, grow a field of corn, harvest it and sell it. Travel study in Cuba can encompass many topics such as business, Spanish or even horticulture and botany. These topics are all relevant when visiting an agromercado to see how it works. Cuba’s sustainable produce is sold at agromercados, state markets and even on the black market. Legalized back in 1994 during the Special Period to help with the basic needs of the Cubans, agromercados or open air farmer’s markets, are open to both the locals and the tourist. The government needed to encourage farmers to grow more than just for themselves so they gave them an incentive; they could earn profit off of what they sold at the agromercados. Some agromercados are run on supply and demand whereas others have a government-imposed price ceiling on the goods sold. The products are mostly from the few private farmers allowed by the state and surpluses of cooperative farms that have fulfilled their quotas and have surpluses. When I recently went to Cuba in my travel study program, we had the opportunity to visit an agromercado. These agromercados are always better than the government ration stores or state markets. The state markets are usually located next to the agromercados to try to keep their prices down. They are authorized to sell more processed goods, such as tomato sauce, peanut bars, guava paste and others. Some agromercados have booths right outside where the tourists can exchange the CUC (Convertible Unit of Currency) into Cuban pesos to use at the market. The agromercado usually sells the basics such as potatoes, plantains, bananas, corn, peppers, carrots, onions, cucumbers and a few other items based on what is available. Sometimes if the agromercado is popular it drives up prices. While it is still cheap for the tourist, it is unattainable for the Cuban. If you ever participate in a travel study program to Cuba, be sure to find an agromercado.
Agromercados Legal travel to Cuba
