National Food Security in Cuba: By What Means?

Abstract

Using data retrieved from the FAO’s food database (FAOSTAT), food security is calculated in Cuba as the annual average recommended daily dietary needs (RDDNs) consumed from imported and domestically grown foods. Domestically grown foods are further differentiated as culturally appropriate foods (CAFs), which are “traditional crops grown in traditional ways for domestic consumption” (USDA, 2008, 42), and non-CAFs. The level of RDDNs consumed from CAFs is used as a measure of food sovereignty. Time series of annual average consumption of RDDNs from imported foods, domestically grown CAFs, and domestically grown non-CAFs are overlaid on a chronology of food policy networks to demonstrate if food sovereignty can serve as an alternative to institutionalised agriculture and food systems for achieving food security, and what form of power-sharing relationships can be effective for achieving food sovereignty in Cuba.