Havana, August 11 (KCNA) -- Cuba has paid much effort to boosting food production.

Speaking at a recent meeting with a group of presidents of cooperatives in the central province of Ciego de Avila, the president of the National Association of Small Farmers, Orlando Lugo, called for increasing food production in Cuba to reduce imports.

During the last five years Cuba has had to spend an average of 1.5 billion USD annually on food imports.