-DATE- 19870211 -YEAR- 1987 -DOCUMENT_TYPE- APPEARANCE -AUTHOR- F. CASTRO -HEADLINE- TOURS SAN CRISTOBAL PRECOOKED-RICE PLANT -PLACE- SAN CRISTOBAL -SOURCE- HAVANA RADIO REBELDE NET -REPORT_NBR- FBIS -REPORT_DATE- 19870211 -TEXT- CASTRO TOURS SAN CRISTOBAL PRECOOKED-RICE PLANT FL111955 Havana Radio Rebelde Network in Spanish 1800 GMT 11 Feb 87 [Text] Commander in Chief Fidel Castro toured the San Cristobal pre-cooked rice plant for more than an hour. Our correspondent, Jose Cabrera Peinado, reports: The president of the Councils of State and Ministers observed the operations of this center, the only one of its kind in the country, and praised the establishment of the plant in Pinar del Rio. The plant is valued at 1.4 million pesos and was completed in less than 7 months, which is considered to be record time because of its complexity. [Unreadable text] and Alejandro Roca, food industry minister, toured different sections of the plant and met the collective of workers, who have pledged to produce 6,000 metric tons of that valuable food item during its first year. The pre-cooked rice will be sold on the parallel market for 3.95 pesos a kilogram. During a frank dialogue with the workers, the commander in chief said Pinar del Rio has the conditions available to open other plants of this type because of the support it represents in rice production. He said this rice contains more vitamin B, nicotinic acid, vitamins B1 and B2, cellulose, dextrin, phosphorus, fats, and minerals, which are traditionally consumed by Cubans. According to information from our colleague, Ismael Merida, the Guillermo Castillo plant is capable of producing 30 metric tons daily and will work 24 hours a day with a reduced number of operators, who will be responsible for the technological processing of the rice, which is chosen in the country by its quality. Finally, the commander in chief said this processing causes the rice to yield more when used in cooking. It needs less fat and besides not being sticky and unpleasant, it has a greater nutritional value. -END-