SRI International Network and Resources Center

CUBA
[en español]

Overview

Cuba was the first country in the Americas to start working seriously on SICA (the Spanish acronym for SRI), thanks to the initiatives of Dr. Rena Pérez, advisor on food security for the Ministry of Sugar, who learned of it in 2000 from a Cornellian at a conference. The first sugar cooperative to try SRI, CFA Camilo Cienfuegos in Bahia Honda, got 9.5 t/ha its first season in 2001 (compared with the usual yield of 6.5 t/ha) which increased during the 2002/2003 season to 10 and 14 t/ha on its two SRI plots.

The Rice Research Institute (IIA) and the National Institute of Agricultural Sciences (INCA) have had trials over the past few years, with the latter reporting a 12 t/ha yield the first season at its rice research station at Los Palacios. A government program, Arroz Popular, to encourage smallholder rice production has taken up SRI as part of its national strategy. By the end of 2003, eight provinces in Cuba had reported initiating SRI trials, with an average yield increase of 71%. The 4th International Rice Meeting convened in Cuba, June 2-6, 2008, and featured a round table on SRI, including experiences in Cuba, Peru and Panama. During February 2009 , participants at the National Group of Cuban Urban Agriculture agreed to plant a minimum of 0.5 hectares SRI in 140 of Cuba's 169 municipalities, which includes all of the country's rice-producing municipalities.

Dr. Pérez, who continues to be a primary SRI promoter in Cuba and throughout Latin America, has produced and disseminated training materials and videos, and in 2009 initiated SICA-America-Latina, a Spanish language Google Group for discussions about the SRI, focusing primarily on Latin America. Also during 2009, trials were begun in San Antonio de los Baños to adapt sprinkler use for use with SRI methods. The Agricultural Engineering Research Institute (IAGRIC) coordinated a workshop in Havana (Dec. 12-16, 2011) to discuss problems associated with mechanization and water use in rice production and the opportunities to use SRI (SICA) to address some of them.

Adaptation for sugarcane: During 2011, the first trials with adapting SRI principles to sugarcane began in Bahía Honda. The reduction in planting material from 13 to 2 tons/ha together with the size of the plants has already attracted much interest from both growers and government officials. (This method, known as Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI) in India where it was first tried, is called "SiCAS" in Cuba.) While the trials burned accidentally two months prior to the intended harvest date, larger more numerous leaves (11 vs. the normal 7 leaves) and increased tillering (18-20 vs. the normal 12-13 tillers) has attracted much attention. A subsequent Dec. 15, 2012, presentation to Cuba's sugarcane industry professionals also garnered much interest. During 2015, Rene Pérez reported that a sugarcane cooperative in Las Tunas that had adapted the SiCAS methods in a dry part of the island to use three-bud setts, which both reduced the required planting material and increased the yields. The first commercial trial at Las Tunas included 15 ha using 3-bud setts in the rainy spring planting season of 2013.

Progress and Activities

2015 UPDATE

• Rena Pérez Presents Cuba's Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI, SiCAs) Adaptations at Cornell

  [September 14, 2015] On September 9, 2015, Rena Pérez reported on progress with both the Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI, or SiCAS in Spanish) and SRI at the SRI-Rice Seminar Series at Cornell University. [SSI/SiCAS is a methodology adapted from SRI principles.] Two years after her 2012 presentation (see article below) on SiCAS to Cuba's sugarcane industry, Perez learned of a sugarcane cooperative in Las Tunas that had adapted the SiCAS methods in a dry part of the island to use three-bud setts, which both reduced the required planting material and increased the yields. The first commercial trial at Las Tunas included 15 ha using 3-bud setts in the rainy spring planting season of 2013. (See PowerPoint and related article for details.)

2012-2013

• Cuban Sugarcane Industry Impressed by Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI, SiCAS)

  [January 14, 2013] On December 15, 2012, Rena Pérez made a presentation in Matanzas, Cuba, to a group of approximately 90 professionals working in the island's sugar industry. The talk, which focused on SRI adaptations to sugarcane (SSI, or SiCAS in Spanish), generated considerable interest among the audience members. Preliminary results were presented for the first trial on the Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI) in the "Camilo Cienfuegos" cane coop in Bahia Honda, Artemisa, Cuba. Pérez also orchestrated the translation into Spanish of AgSRI's Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative publication about SiCAS (SSI) in India. The translation (shown at right), SiCAS Sistema de Caña de Azúcar Sostenible, is available on the AgSRI website. Contact Rena Pérez to obtain a copy.

• Sugarcane Grown with SRI Principles (SSI, SiCAS) in Bahía Honda Burns Prematurely, but Impresses Cooperative Nonetheless

  [Nov. 28, 2012] Trials during 2012 on 0.9 hectare of sugarcane grown using SRI principles (SSI, or SiCAS in Spanish) at the Bahía Honda sugarcane cooperative in Cuba were burned prematurely in November 2012, about two months prior to when they should have been harvested. Raul Frontera, one of the cooperative's technicians, decided to count and measure the width of the upper leaves of several cane stalks. He relayed that while normal cane has seven leaves, those in the burned SiCAS field had eleven leaves and were eight centimeters wide. Furthermore, while normal cane grown there had 12 and 13 tillers, the cane in the burned field had between 18 and 20 (left). The technician responsible for the SiCAS plot subsequently estimated that the cane harvested from the destroyed field translated to about 150 - 160 tons/ha. While the SiCAS was originally of interest to prepare replacements for transplanting in conventional fields, these results may persuade the coop to adopt SiCAS on full fields. (See report for details).

   

• Trials in Bahía Honda Using SRI Principles for Sugarcane Generate Substantial Interest

  [Sept. 10, 2012] On September 7, 2012, Rena Pérez traveled to Cornell University to present an update on both SRI and the newly-introduced Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI, or SiCAS in Spanish). The SRI-Rice-sponsored seminar (left) generated much interest due to the potential for more than doubling the yield of sugarcane, which continues to be the most important crop in Cuba. (See Spanish language PowerPoint presentation and flyer) .

  
   Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SiCAS) in Cuba

  The story of how SRI adaptations for sugarcane have come to Cuba from India can be found the article "The Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative "internets" its way to Cuba." Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI, or, SiCAS in Spanish) methods that were found in the manual promoted by the Indian company AgSRI were used to begin trials at the Camilo Cienfuegos Coop in Bahia Honda. While yield data are not yet complete, the managers at the "Camilo Cienfuegos" cane coop are enthusiastic about the tillering and growth as well as the reduction in cane needed to plant the fields. The traditional method requires 13 tons/ha of clean cane while SiCAS requires on 2 tons/ha! (See slideshow at right and updates: article and Spanish langauge presentation).

2011

• SRI (SICA) Workshop in Havana Focuses on Water Use and Mechanization

  [Dec. 20, 2011] Cuba's newly-created Agricultural Engineering Research Institute (IAGRIC) coordinated a workshop in Havana, December 12-16, 2011, to consider the crucial situation with respect to water usage for rice on the island since 47% of the total water dedicated to agriculture is consumed by rice production. There were 55 participants, including officials from FAO and UNDP, scientists/technicians from two research institutions (In Granos and IAGRIC), representatives from the Popular Rice Group (MINAG) and three types of coops (CCS, CPA and U BPC) and private producers. The report for the Workshop on the Efficient Use of Water and Machinery for Rice Production is available in English or Spanish.

  The participants, who came from the five major rice growing regions in the country, spent five days listening to the problems associated with a growing lack of water followed by discussions about the possibility of addressing them by introducing a new rice production system known as the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) or, in Spanish, SICA. The workshop was intended to promote the new programs related to agricultural decentralization on the island, had as its slogan: More Rice for the World, More Water for the Planet. A follow-up workshop is planned following the harvest season. (See also blog post in the SRI News and Views)

• Cuba SRI Experience Shared at International Workshop in Costa Rica

  Rena Pérez represented Cuba at the First Workshop on the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) in Latin America and the Caribbean, which was held at EARTH University, Costa Rica, on October 31- November 1, 2011. Her presentation, ¿Como llegó el SICA a America Latina?
  (How Did SRI Come to Latin America? Overview of how SRI developed in Cuba), generated much discussion as Cuba was the first country in the Americas to begin experimenting with SRI.

• Results of Thesis Research on Modified SICA
  

  Orlando Martí, an experienced soil technician, has completed and defended a MSc degree at the Agricultural University of Havana in which he evaluated a modified version of SICA, trying to make the standard methods less demanding for Cuban farmers so that they could enjoy at least some of the benefits of the methodology.

  A particular innovation was to raise the rice seedlings in trays and to establish the crop by throwing the young plants in their blocks of soil into the prepared field with relatively wide spacing. Martí also continued a greater degree of flooding than is recommended for SICA in order to avoid using labor-intensive methods of weed control. He reduced the use of herbicides by 70%, thus lowering farmer costs of production while also reducing water requirements.

  Even though this adaptation used only some of the SICA principles, the yield advantage was quite significant. The trial plots, laid out with randomized bloc design and with replications, gave average modified SICA yields of 10.4 tons/ha compared with average yields of 4.2 tons/ha for standard farmer practice.

  It is possible that even greater yield advantage could be obtained with full use of SICA concepts and methods, but for now, Martí finds farmers interested in this modified method to raise yields with just partial utilization of the methods. An English summary of the thesis is available, along with the thesis in Spanish.

2002-2009

• see SRI Cuba Archives for news prior to 2009

Reports and General Articles

(in chronological order)

• Pérez, Rena. 2015. Progress in Cuba with the Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative. SRI-Rice website. June.
• Pérez, Rena. 2012. The SSI trial in Bahia Honda, Cuba, suffers an "accident"! System of Rice Intensification website. November.
• Pérez, Rena. 2012. Sistema de Caña de Azúcar Sostenible. System of Rice Intensification website. 12 slides. [pdf of a PowerPoint presentation about the "Sustainable Sugarcane System (Sistema de Caña de Azúcar Sostenible, or SiCAS in Spanish)]
• Pérez, Rena. 2012. A second visit to the Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative in Bahía Honda, Cuba. System of Rice Intensification website. January 27.
• Pérez, Rena. 2012. El comienzo del Sostenible Sugarcane Iniciative en Cuba.System of Rice Intensification website. (2p., 86KB pdf) [Spanish language document about the first efforts to introduce Sustainable Sugarcane Inititiatve (SSI) to Cuba].
• Pérez, Rena. 2012. Workshop on the Efficient Use of Water and Machinery for Rice Production. System of Rice Intensification website. 2p (185KB). (in English and Spanish). [Report a workshop organized by Agricultural Engineering Research Institute (IAGRIC) in Havana, Cuba, on December 12-16, 2011.]
• Fisher, Lucy. 2012. SRI Gaining Momentum in Latin America -- Cuba. Global News and Views SRI blog. January 10.
• Pérez, Rena. 2011.The Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative "internets" its way to Cuba. AgSRI website.
• Pérez, Rena. 2009. Workshop on Irrigation. System of Rice Intensification website. 2p (53KB). [Report a rice irrigation workshop held at the Institute of Investigations for Irrigation and Drainage, Havana, Cuba, on September 30]
• Pérez, Rena. 2009. Cuban Urban Agriculture celebrates a second SRI workshop. System of Rice Intensification website. February 14. (1p. pdf) [Report for the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development's SRI Group.]
• Uphoff, Norman T. 2008. Report on SRI/SICA visit to Cuba - May 31-June 8. System of Rice Intensification website. (11p. pdf) [Trip report prepared for the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development]
• Pérez, Rena. 2008. El desarrollo del SICA en el mundo. System of Rice Intensification website. (9p. pdf) [Spanish language report prepared for Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development's SRI program].
• Álvarez, Leonardo Cuesta. 2007. Priorizan cultivo de arroz. El Habanero (edicion digital). Nov. 23. (retrieved April 23, 2008)
• Uphoff, Norman T. 2004. Report on field research visit to Cuba to assess SRI - July 7-12, 2004. System of Rice Intensification website. (16p. pdf) [Trip report prepared for the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development]
• Uphoff, Norman T. 2003. Report on visit to Cuba - May 25-30, 2003. System of Rice Intensification website. (9 p. pdf) [Trip report prepared for the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development]
• Uphoff, Norman T. 2002. Trip report from Cuba on the System of Rice Intensification - July 8-14, 2002. System of Rice Intensification website. (5p. pdf) [Trip report prepared for the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development]
• Pérez, Rena. 2002. Experience in Cuba with the System of Rice Intensification. Paper presented at the conference on Assessments of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), April 1-4, in Sanya, China.

Research

• Martí Ramírez, Orlando. 2011. Evaluación de las modificaciones a la tecnología del Sistema Intensivo del Cultivo del Arroz (SICA) para la producción popular en el municipio Melena del Sur, Provincia Mayabeque. Universidad Agraria de la Habana (Cuba). (34p., 417KB pdf) [see English language summary]
• Martín, Yoannis, F. Soto, Y. E. Rodríguez y R. Morejón. 2010. El Sistema Intensivo de Cultivo del Arroz (SICA) disminuye la cantidad de semillas para la siembra, aumenta los rendimientos agrícolas y ahorra el agua de riego. Cultivos Tropicales 31(1):70-73.

SICA America Latina Discussion Group

• SICA America Latina is a Spanish language Google Group for discussions on the System of Rice Intensification (Sistema Intensivo Cultivo Arroz or SICA in Spanish) primarily relating to Latin America. Global SRI issues are also discussed.
  
  To subscribe, go to the SICA AMERICA LATINA URL at http://groups.google.es/group/sica-america-latina and follow the instructions, or send e-mail to: sica-america-latina@googlegroups.com

Workshops and Meetings

• A Workshop on the Efficient Use of Water and Machinery for Rice Production was organized by Agricultural Engineering Research Institute (IAGRIC) and held in Havana on Dec. 12-16, 2011. (Report available in English or Spanish)
• A SRI workshop was held by the The National Group of Cuban Urban Agriculture during February 2009 (see also presentation on the group's activities)
• A SRI Workshop at the Menelao Mora Cattle Cooperative in the town of La Ruda, San Jose de las Lajas, Havana province, was held on February 27, 2008 (see documentation by Rena Perez)
• SRI promoted at Urban Agriculture Workshop in Cuba
  (La Agricultura Urbana en Cuba promoverá el SICA)
  A nationwide Urban Agriculture Workshop was held November 21, 2007, in Havana, Cuba, with the aim of promoting SRI within Cuba. It was agreed that two municipalities in each of Cuba’s 14 provinces will initiate trials beginning with the current rice planting season in December, 2007. The 31 workshop participants, who came from across Cuba, included government functionaries, rice specialists and other interested parties from seven of the 14 provinces.  The event was chaired by Dr. Adolfo Rodriguez, Director, Cuban Urban Agriculture (INIFAT); Dr. Luis Alemán, Head of “Popular Rice”, MINAG; and Dr. Jorge Hernández, Director, Cuban Institute of Rice (IIA). (See English or Spanish version of the workshop report).

Practical Information

• Gujja, Biksham, Vinod Goud, U.S Natarajan, T. V. V. V Rao, Suhasini Ramayanam and Sraban Kumar Dalai. 2012. SiCAS - Sistema de Caña de Azúcar Sostenible - Produciendo 'Más con Menos'. AgSRI website. (Spanish translation by Rena Pérez; 50p. pdf) [System of Rice Intensification principles as adapted to sugarcane by Biksham Gujja.]
• Pérez, Rena. 2003. SICA: Sistema Intensivo de Cultivo Arrocera. System of Rice Intensification website. (2p. 2.54MB pdf) [trifold brochure; also available as pptx file]
• Sistema Intensivo de Cultivo Arrocena (SICA) bulletins: SRI bulletins in Spanish with practical information on SRI. The material was adapted for use in Cuba by Dr. Rena Pérez. SICA bulletin #1 and #2 are currently available.

Videos

• Sistema Intensivo de Cultivo Arrocena (videos),
  - Spanish language SRI (SICA) video by Dr. Rena Pérez, Ministry of Sugar, Cuba (with technical assistance by Roberto Franco). 14 minutes, 35.2 MB
  - English language SRI video by Dr. Rena Pérez, Ministry of Sugar, Cuba, 36 minutes, 72.6 MB.

PowerPoint Presentations

(Notes: Click here to see all SRI Cuba presentations on slidehare.net. Transcripts are at the bottom of each presentation. There is a "full screen" button at the lower right corner of the presentation to enlarge the presentation. If you have trouble viewing the slideshow, make sure you have Flash 9 or higher installed and JavaScript enabled.)

• Pérez, Rene. 2015. 1506 - The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) and its Adaptation to Sugarcane in Cuba. Presented at SRI-Rice Seminar Series, Cornell University, September 9, 2015. 31 slides.
• Pérez, Rena. 2013. SiCAS Sistema de Caña de Azúcar Sostenible. Presentation by Rena Pérez about the Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative in Cuba. 26 slides. (The last two slides inlcude additional explanations of the individual slides.)
• Pérez, Rena. 2012. El SICA Ahorra Mucha Agua. PowerPoint presented at Cornell University, Sept. 7, 2012. 12 slides. (Spanish)[About the System of Rice Intensification and its adaptation to sugarcane in Cuba]
• Pérez, Rena. 2012. Sistema de Caña de Azúcar Sostenible. System of Rice Intensification website. 12 slides. [pdf of a PowerPoint presentation about the "Sustainable Sugarcane System (Sistema de Caña de Azúcar Sostenible, or SiCAS in Spanish)]
• Pérez, Rena. 2011. ¿Como llegó el SICA a America Latina? (How Did SRI Come to Latin America? Overview of how SRI developed in Cuba)
  - PowerPoint presented on October 31, 2011, at the First Workshop on the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) in Latin America and the Caribbean Cuba at EARTH University in Costa Rica. (Spanish)
  
• 2009. El SICA ahorra mucha agua
  - PowerPoint presentation on September 30, 2009, to a rice irrigation workshop was held at the Institute of Investigations for Irrigation and Drainage in Havana to discuss the current state of the hydraulic infrastructure in Cuba. 37 slides.
• Rodriguez, Adolfo. 2009. Resultados Alcanzados en la 2008 con la Technologia SICA en el Sub-Programa de Arroz Popular.
  - Slide presentation at the February 2009 SRI workshop of the National Group of Cuban Urban Agriculture. 7p. (375 KB pdf)
  (see also SlideShare version)
• 2008. Cooperativa de Producción Agropecuaria "Camilo Cienfuegos" Bahía Honda. Pinar del Río
• Pérez, Rena. 2003. Sistema Intensivo de Cultivo Arrocero (SICA)
  - PowerPoint presented at the 5th Meeting of Organic Agriculture, Havana, Cuba. 11 slides.
• Uphoff, Norman. 2002. The System of Rice Intensification: An Opportunity for Improving Food Security in Latin America?
  - PowerPoint presentation at the 2nd International Rice Congress, held in Havana, Cuba. 67 slides.

Photo Collection

• The SRI-Rice Cuba Photo Collection contains pictures obtained from Rena Perez and Norman Uphoff. The slideshow is embedded in the overview section at the top of the page. If you do not have Flash installed, click here to see individual photos in the Picasaweb album.
• Photos are also available from the Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SiCAS) trials at Bahia Honda, Cuba