In February 2026, the INSUAH team held its final workshop in Havana. Over the seven-day period, in addition to exchanging updates on each Living Lab, we were introduced by our host partners, Jorge Peña Díaz and Oliesky Fabre del Castillo, to their local network of urban agricultural heritage initiatives and were taken on several visits to farms associated with these initiatives. The visit took place amid an apparently insurmountable scenario: extraordinary external pressures on the island nation and a blockade on oil imports have partly paralyzed the island and sent it back to a scenario that recalled previous crises from the 1960s and early 1990s.
Given its colonial origin, relatively large-scale agricultural practices in Havana started in unison with urban development. A curious observer could identify the traces of this parallel evolution in areas that were never occupied. Nonetheless, compared to urban agricultural systems in other regions that date back hundreds of years, Cuba’s urban agriculture represents a relatively recent development. This is particularly true when it comes to planning-led initiatives. For example, after the relative failure of a major urban agricultural attempt – the Havana Green Belt Project (Cordón de La Habana) – launched in 1967 with the support of massive voluntary participation to plant fruit trees and coffee around Havana with the aim of achieving urban self-sufficiency, institutionally led urban agriculture fell into a period of dormancy. However, right after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the urban food system and particularly the agricultural sector largely broke down, leading to food shortages. Under these circumstances, urban agriculture in Cuba was revived, taking on the crucial role of supplying food to the city’s population. This program successfully inspired multiple initiatives worldwide that attempted to impact urban systems, making it a young “urban agricultural heritage of the struggle for urban sustainability.” Despite these positive external impacts, its vitality later declined after only a brief period of post-crisis revitalization. However, during the visit, the team witnessed a resurgence brought about by the newly created crisis.
Now, 30 years on, how has urban agriculture in Havana developed? Furthermore, given the current crisis posed by the US blockade, can the traditional cultivation knowledge play a key role in sustaining urban food security through development and innovation? What insights do Havana’s urban agricultural practices offer to global urban agriculture? With these questions in mind, we visited a series of production sites in different urban contexts of the city of Havana.
“The best teachers are the local farmers”
In an open space between the apartment blocks in Alamar, planting beds made from construction waste such as bricks stretch for hundreds of meters, where lettuces, celery, carrots, and other vegetables are being irrigated by Micro-sprinklers. In Havana, these urban farms – known as “Organopónicos” – are scattered across building backyards and wasteland: from the residential area in Alamar to the vicinity of the city’s most important landmark, the José Martí Monument, the Organopónicos can be seen everywhere.
During the “Special Period” of the 1990s, Cuba faced food shortages and urban development plans came to a standstill. From this period onwards, the Cuban government began granting farmers free use of land in urban planning zones that were not currently in use for cultivation, under a usufruct arrangement. Land that had once been planned for baseball grounds and hospitals has now been transformed into Organopónicos farms. These farms primarily produce vegetables, spices, medicinal herbs and fruit, which are supplied to hospitals, schools and other institutions in the city through agreements. At the same time, retail outlets have been set up within the cultivation areas to sell vegetables to the local community.
Due to the US blockade, essential agricultural inputs such as fertilizers, seeds, and pesticides struggle to reach Cuba. “Like most farming on the island, the Organopónicos operate entirely organically, making the most of the resources available on the island,” explained Gabriel, a staff member at Organopónico Vivero Alamar. Here, plants such as oregano and basil are grown for both commercial production and pest control. The rice husks and cow manure required for the growing medium are sourced from neighboring provinces, while earthworms and biochar are produced on the farm itself.
In the earthworm breeding area, Gabriel provided a highly professional and detailed explanation of how to select appropriate combinations of earthworms to produce humus, taking into account the local climate and their reproductive capacity. Here, compost is formulated based on the chemical properties of the local soil, and biochar produced on the farm is added to the soil to regulate temperature and pH levels while maintaining a balance of minerals and nutrients.
“Who taught you this knowledge?” we asked. Gabriel replied sincerely: “Our best teachers, our best books, are the older generation of farmers here. The rest of our knowledge comes from books. I’m not actually an agronomist, but a metal engineer. However, over the past nine years, this has become my second career. But honestly, the best work we do—or rather, the things we’ve learned—all come from the country folk.
Tradition Embracing Change: Inheritance and Adaptation
In addition to the Organopónicos, private farms and farming cooperatives located around Havana also play a vital role in ensuring the city’s food security. In the 1990s, policy changes enabled farmers to take over bankrupt sugarcane farms or be granted usufruct rights for cultivation. Over the 30 years, land policy changes, economic reforms, climate changes… Change has always been a constant theme for Cuban urban agriculture participants. Against this backdrop, urban farmers continue to practise traditional farming methods while simultaneously innovating to better adapt to ongoing changes.
Our visit at Jaramillo Farm began with the traditional drink called “aliñao”, which is served to celebrate the birth of a new family member. “Our farm is situated exactly in the area of former Havana Green Belt.” The manager of this farming cooperative told us. Following the granting of usufruct rights in the 1990s, nine partners from various professions—including veterinary surgeons, lawyers and teachers—decided to take these abandoned lands and set up this agricultural cooperative. As one of the participants in the Ark of Taste project from Slow Food, they now cultivate a total of 52 endangered crop varieties from across the island. Today, this farm not only supplies this endangered produce to markets in Havana but also prepares dishes based on traditional recipes, selling these prepared meals to local communities in the city.
For Vista Hermosa farm, the change does not lie in the profession or land usufruct, but in the introduction of a new business model to traditional cultivation practices. The farm in Havana Province practices circular agriculture across four generations, drawing on farming knowledge passed down from indigenous communities. Here, the pigs drink the liquid left over from cheese-making and cassava processing, whilst the buffalo feed on banana tree trunks. The livestock move between different areas according to the crop rotation, allowing different types of manure to permeate the soil evenly and enhance its fertility. Today, this circular farming approach has become the farm’s hallmark, attracting visitors to come and experience the farm and enjoy the food.
February in Cuba is the dry season, with warm sunshine and calm seas – it seems much the same as in previous years. “Over the years, we have faced major challenges, but climate change events have had the greatest impact on us.” Annabelle, the owner of Tungasuk Farm, told us. As a former professional in the catering industry, she has launched cookery courses using ingredients harvested from her own farm, reflecting the central role of cuisine in Cuban culture. But after the loss caused by several hurricane seasons, learning how to cope with climate change has become essential to her agricultural. Since then, she began participating in the UN’s online course, ‘National Adaptation Plans: Building Climate Resilience in Agriculture’, to understand the links between climate change adaptation, traditional agriculture practice and sustainable development.
“This place brings together those who hate us and those who love us…”
“But what is important, as a community, we are together in order to try to improve the conditions of the community.” In Arroyo Naranjo, on the outskirts of Havana, we met Natalia, the organizer of “Proyecto Comunitario y familiar Vida”, and the children in the courtyard. As part of the Third Cuban Educational Perfection, these children from local primary and secondary schools come here to learn about sustainable agriculture and strengthen their ties with the community. Here, the children learn to grow food and to recognize traditional crops from across Cuba and their uses.
Proyecto Comunitario y familiar Vida originated from the community’s need to collectively address food security issues. Since 2009, they have been gathering to exchange and learn about farming practices. This knowledge initially came from official institutions, but over time, the community’s desire for further information has outstripped what research institutions could offer. Thanks to close ties with the eastern region of Cuba, farmers from there have been able to visit Proyecto Comunitario y familiar Vida to hold various workshops and pass on their local farming expertise.
Today, Proyecto Vida is not only a hub for the exchange of traditional farming knowledge but also provides free food donations to the community’s elderly and vulnerable members. In fact, “community” has been a recurring theme throughout our visits to all these urban farms. Almost every farm we visited provides free food to local hospitals, care homes, and orphanages. The community has also come to recognize that the existence of these urban farms safeguards their food security. Given the current transport difficulties caused by the US’s strict blockade, this value has become even more apparent.
Efforts Deserve Recognition
In Cuba today, the Urban, Suburban, and Family Agriculture Program is integrated into the Food Sovereignty and Nutritional Education Plan approved in the country. Some municipalities have begun allocating a portion of their budgets to urban agricultural development, supporting infrastructure such as water networks and solar panel installation. According to statistics from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, urban agriculture in Havana provided 70% of the total fresh vegetable consumption, with yields reaching up to 20 kg per square meter.
Currently, Cuba is facing its ‘second crisis’ following the Special Period due to the severe blockade by the US. Yet these urban agriculture participants have contributed to urban food security by adapting and applying local traditional knowledge. Their practices not only demonstrate the trajectory and vitality of urban development but also reflect the spirit of community solidarity and mutual support. These aspects are crucial to understanding the role of heritage in urban agriculture, and the efforts of these practitioners deserve to be seen by the world.
We would like to thank every farm that welcomed us during our visits, and we are also grateful to the INSUAH Havana team for their excellent planning and organization of our week-long itinerary.
