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Cuba starts rationing food and other products

Cuba Rationing - Level 0

Cuba will ration food and other products. It will ration beans, chicken, eggs, rice, soap and other things. There is an economic crisis in Cuba. There are shortages of food. This is because the USA put a trade embargo on Cuba. Another reason is a crisis in Venezuela means Cuba is getting less fuel.

Cuba imports about two-thirds of its food. It can now import less food. Many supermarket shelves are empty. People must stand in line to buy food. Rationing will stop people buying and keeping food. If people do this, there is less food for others. One shopper in the capital city Havana said life was "tough".

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Cuba Rationing - Level 1

Cuba says it will ration food and other products. It will ration beans, chicken, eggs, rice, soap and other goods. There is a serious economic crisis in Cuba and there are many shortages of food. This is because the USA changed how it trades with Cuba. A U.S. trade embargo makes it difficult for Cuba to buy food. Many people say the cut in fuel aid to Cuba from Venezuela is the reason. A crisis in Venezuela means there is a two-thirds cut in fuel to Cuba.

Cuba imports about two-thirds of its food. It spends about $2 billion a year on food imports. Cuba can now import less food. Many supermarket shelves are empty. People must stand in line in shops. The government is rationing to stop people buying and keeping food. If people do this, there is less food for others. A store in Havana said people could not buy more than four packets of powdered milk. One shopper said life was "tough".

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Cuba Rationing - Level 2

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Cuba has announced it will start rationing food and other basic products. It says beans, chicken, eggs, rice, soap and other goods will be rationed. Cuba is facing a serious economic crisis. There are many shortages of food and other things. This is because the USA has changed how it is trading with Cuba. The U.S. trade embargo makes it very difficult for Cuba to buy food. However, many economists say there is a bigger reason for the shortages. This is the cut in fuel aid from Venezuela. A crisis in Venezuela has led to a two-thirds cut in cheap fuel to Cuba.

Cuba imports about two-thirds of its food. A lot of this came from the USA. Cuba spent about $2 billion a year on food imports. The US embargo and the crisis in Venezuela means Cuba can import less food. Many supermarket shelves are empty. Many people have to stand in line in shops. The government has started rationing to stop people buying and keeping food. If people do this, there is less food for others. One store in the capital city Havana said people could not buy more than four packets of powdered milk and four packs of sausages. One shopper said life was "tough".

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Cuba Rationing - Level 3

Cuba's government has announced that it is starting the rationing of food and other basic products. Cuba's Commerce Minister, Betsy Diaz Velazquez, said beans, chicken, eggs, rice, soap and other goods would be rationed. She said Cuba is facing a serious economic crisis. There are many shortages of food and other things in Cuba. Ms Velazquez said this was because the USA has changed how it is trading with Cuba. Velazquez said the U.S. trade embargo means it is very difficult for Cuba to buy a lot of food. However, many economists say there is a bigger reason for the shortages - the cut in fuel aid from Venezuela. The crisis in Venezuela has led to a two-thirds cut in shipments of cheap fuel to Cuba.

Cuba imports about two-thirds of its food from other countries. A lot of this used to come from the USA. Cuba spent about $2 billion a year on importing food. The US embargo and the crisis in Venezuela means it is difficult for Cuba to import food. The shelves of many stores and supermarkets are empty. Many people have to stand in long lines when shops get a food delivery. The government has started rationing to stop people hoarding food. If people buy too much of one thing and then hoard it, there is less food for others. One store in the capital city Havana limited people to just four packets of powdered milk, four packs of sausages and five packets of peas per person. One shopper said life was "tough".

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