Cocktail connoisseurs around the world may soon be asking where the rum has gone as Cuba faces one of its worst sugar harvests since the 19th century.
The island nation’s sugar production is expected to fall short of 200,000 metric tons this year, a far cry from the already underwhelming 350,000 tons produced in 2023.
Cuba’s beloved rum industry, perhaps the nation’s most reliable and valuable part of its economic engine, is directly threatened by the paltry output.
The communist government’s state-run sugar monopoly, AZCUBA, had been hoping for at least 265,000 tons for use in the milling season.
The disastrously disappointing crop is further complicated by national regulations that discourage or outright ban Cuban producers from importing raw materials.
The island nation has pursued total economic independence since its communist revolution established the current state in 1959. Sugar was a cornerstone of its strategy, and over 100 processing facilities were activated to jump-start production.
Half a million volunteers contributed to a historic 1970 harvest that raked in over 8 million metric tons of sugar. Production has steadily decreased since then and has dramatically fallen off since 2019, when over 1 million tons were still being produced annually.
The causes of the shortage are numerous. The industry’s infrastructure is collapsing due to a wider economic downturn in the country, including power outages, failing farm equipment, fuel shortages, and declining facilities.
Communist Party officials at both the national and local levels have acknowledged the crisis and promised to save the industry, but long-term solutions have failed to manifest.
Cuban rums are typically aged for several years, meaning the year-over-year decline in sugar production and its effects on rum exports are experienced in staggered changes to the market.
If Cuba remains isolated on the international market due to United States-led sanctions and does not adapt its production processes to accommodate its failing domestic crop, the future of its iconic rum exports is uncertain.
Any attempts to bring Cuba back into the international marketplace would require a major shift in its diplomatic strategies with the U.S.
STATE DEPARTMENT LISTS CUBA AS NONCOOPERATING COUNTRY OVER HARBORING TERRORISTS
Earlier this month, the U.S. State Department designated Cuba as a “not fully cooperating country” on the accusation that it is harboring approximately 11 fugitives.
“In 2024, the Cuban regime did not fully cooperate with the United States on counterterrorism. There were at least 11 U.S. fugitives from justice in Cuba, including several facing terrorism-related charges, and the Cuban regime made clear it was not willing to discuss their return to face justice in our nation,” State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said. ”The Cuban regime’s refusal to engage on this important issue, as well as other recent circumstances of non-cooperation on terrorism-related law enforcement matters, made efforts to cooperate on counterterrorism issues futile in 2024.”
Other nations hit with the same designation include North Korea, Iran, Syria, and Venezuela.