CounterPunch Exclusives

CounterPunch Exclusives

How U.S. Sanctions Are Fueling Hunger in Cuba

Image by Radio Angulo.

In Cuba today, food is rotting in the fields while families go hungry.

On a recent trip to the eastern part of the island, I spoke with farmers who are watching their livelihoods slip away—not because they lack skill or dedication, but because they lack fuel, parts, and basic inputs. One farmer described fields ready to harvest but no diesel to bring the crops in. Others showed broken machinery they have no way to repair. Even those who have turned to animal traction are having problems with feed.These are not isolated stories; they reflect a system under siege.

The U.S. fuel embargo, together with tightened sanctions under Trump, is strangling Cuba’s agricultural system from seed to table—making it harder and harder for Cubans to feed themselves.

Cuban farmers have already been operating under severe constraints imposed by U.S. sanctions—struggling to obtain spare parts to repair tractors, access fertilizers and pesticides, or secure basic inputs like seeds. Machinery breaks down and sits idle for months because parts can’t be imported or paid for through normal banking channels.

Add to that Hurricane Melissa, which struck Cuba in October 2025, flooding fertile farmland and destroying crops. Climate change is wreaking havoc on agriculture, bringing stronger storms, longer droughts, erratic rainfall, and rising temperatures.

Into this already fragile system comes the fuel crisis, compounding every existing problem. Even the farm equipment that can be repaired........

© CounterPunch