I’d say the food situation is the worst without a doubt compared to other islands in the Caribbean. Jamaica had phenomenal food when we visited last year in March. Every meal felt like a 5 star resto.

Cuba had butter packets imported from Poland. I suspect a lot of their food is imported. There is lots of land in Cuba but according to my bus driver, something like 95% of the land is controlled by the government and farmers who work that land are paid by the government.

I was told that everyone gets paid the same regardless of job so there isn’t much demand in being a farmer, which accounts for farm and food shortages despite having more than enough land for it.

I do know that as we were driving, we’d drive past these huge fields of grass. Nothing there but huge mowed fields. There would be guys with weed wackers mowing the fields. Felt like a waste of time and energy considering they weren’t parks where people would hang out. Very well-kept but for absolutely no reason.

I imagine it’s a bunch of factors - what I mentioned and the fact that they’re embargoed by the US which makes obtaining goods of any kind exceedingly difficult and costly.