U.S. food exports to Cuba dwindle under Bush

HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba will close deals for Canadian wheat and Vietnamese rice at the annual trade fair in Havana that opened on Monday, while U.S. food sales dwindle.

American vendors and Cuban officials blamed the tightening of U.S. financial sanctions against Communist Cuba, a policy U.S. President George W. Bush reaffirmed two weeks ago.

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Sales of U.S. food -- which Cuba must pay for in cash -- have totaled $1.8 billion, but business peaked in 2004 when the Bush administration made transactions harder by requiring payment before shipment. Sales peaked at $392 million in 2004 and declined to $340 million last year.

Cuba has turned to Brazil, Argentina and Canada for grains, soybeans and chicken, said Alvarez, who will sign a contract for 150,000 tonnes of Canadian wheat on Tuesday.

"American producers are been hurt by the embargo. Trade with the United States is uncertain because Cuban payments get blocked," he said.

Bush rejected any easing of U.S. sanctions against Cuba in a speech on October 24 in which he said the transfer of power from ailing Fidel Castro to his brother Raul amounted to merely "exchanging one dictator for another."

Tighter enforcement of sanctions by his administration has led international banks to shun dollar transactions with Cuba and close offices in Havana, making Cuban payments harder.