The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) will soon donate equipment to increase cheese production at Finca Vista Hermosa, and at the same time establish a reference center to train Cuban producers in the processes associated with a mini-industry for local cheese production.
The donation is part of the FAO-GEF (Global Environment Facility) Project “Introduction of New Farming Methods for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity, including Plant and Animal Genetic Resources, in Production Landscapes in Selected Areas of Cuba,” (COBIMAS) implemented jointly with the Ministry of Agriculture.
Thanks to this partnership, the production process of cheese from goat and buffalo milk will be improved, and the production of other dairy products will be diversified, all with positive socio-economic and environmental impacts.
According to Raúl Relova, a member of the Finca Vista Hermosa team, the collaboration also aims to assist other producers in the country who are developing products based on goat’s milk, with proposals that will contribute to the sustainability of their projects.
Spices, vegetables, yogurt, sausages, croquettes and hamburgers are products offered on the farm and sold through the use of social networks such as WhatsApp, especially since the beginning of the pandemic and the mobility restrictions.
Finca Vista Hermosa is committed to a closed-loop production cycle, based on sustainability and agro-ecology, with services such as gastronomy and home delivery, with the help of the Mandao enterprise, incorporated during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also a Local Development Project that supports and promotes the practice of eco-tourism.
The partnership with Vista Hermosa is part of the global framework for the transformation of agri-food systems promoted by FAO, to promote better production, nutrition and a better environment in support of the 2030 Agenda.
In this sense, the donation of this technology for the production of cheese is committed to conservation, environmental and productive objectives, with an impact on improving the living conditions of producers and the population.
With a history of 10 years, this agro-ecological farm has achieved important results that have an impact on food production for the municipality of Guanabacoa, with 45,000 liters of cow’s milk produced annually for the state, as well as 5,000 liters of goat’s milk and 35 tons of beef. It also supplies goat’s milk to children intolerant to cow’s milk in the municipality.
This partnership with the private sector also seeks to promote the use, conservation and improvement of genetic resources as a fundamental principle for food sovereignty, the fight against climate change and sustainable local development, a strategic objective of the COBIMAS project, which contributes to the conservation of species, breeds and varieties of global and national importance for food and agriculture, such as the Criollo goat.
