Guantanamo.- The Yateritas Microjet Basic Business Unit (UEB) is playing a significant role in increasing the availability of plantains at the Saturday agricultural fairs in Guantánamo City. The unit is gradually recovering from the damage caused by the recent hurricanes that struck Guantánamo.
Although these challenges—including fuel and fertilizer shortages and the deterioration of irrigation systems—have prevented the plantation from returning to its historical production levels, its workers are making every effort to overcome the difficulties. They are currently harvesting approximately 30 tons per week, a significant improvement over the zero production recorded for several months after Hurricane Melissa struck last October.
Most of this production is destined for the state procurement agency; agricultural fairs in the municipalities of Guantánamo, San Antonio del Sur, and Imías; and the markets located on Carretera and 2 Oeste, as well as the former Youth Labor Army market in the Caribe neighborhood.
The partial recovery of production at the Yateritas Microjet Plantation has been achieved despite a significant reduction in the workforce.
In the face of hurricane damage and the resulting decline in production, many workers sought other, better-paying jobs, explained Aricel Samón, director of the UEB.
The unit is currently short 60 workers, and some work crews have only two or three employees—or even just one—instead of the usual average of five, Samón noted. He added that, because of the fuel shortage, not a single hectare of plantains has been planted out of the 60 hectares planned for August.
To partially offset the decline in plantain production, some workers have been assigned to cultivating sweet potatoes, beans, and tomatoes. The latter two crops are currently part of the cold-weather planting campaign.
