Cuba Takes First Steps toward Growing Wheat
News from Cuba | Tuesday, 13 September 2011
Farmers in this central-southern province achieved a modest wheat harvest, creating the basis for fostering the cultivation of wheat, a local Agriculture Ministry grain expert said Monday.
Mario Scrubb, an agronomist with the Agricultre Ministry's provincial office, told reporters that the harvest provided two tons of wheat seed, which will be used to plant almost 70 hectares of land from November to December.
The seeds were grown on land that is part of what is called the suburban agriculture movement, a production alternative that is taking root in the outskirts of Cuban cities.
"We obtained seeds based on a Brazilian variety with yields of more than one ton per hectare," Scrubb said.
Originally from ancient Mesopotamia, wheat, along with rice and corn, is one of the three globally produced grains with the highest consumption among Western civilians.
