BY NANCY SAN MARTIN

  HAVANA - Cubans and Americans strolled the aisles of this island's newest and most modern supermarkets Friday, eyeing the same products for different reasons: the Cubans checked prices to see what they could afford while the Americans, representing some of the biggest firms in the United States, scoped out the potential for profits.

  The grocery stores in the Miramar suburb were stocked with imported items from across the globe. A limited number of U.S. products also were on sale, including
  Coca-Cola, various California wines and Haagen-Daz ice cream.

  ''Some things we can buy but the costs of others are prohibitive,'' said Elena Alcazar, a first-time visitor to the Palco market. She filled her shopping basket with $20 worth of products, including imported rice and pasta.

  ''Still, it's great to be able to come here and have a choice,'' she said.

  Around the corner, the purchasing manager for Miami-based Sunlight Foods, jotted down descriptions on the size, packaging and prices of products similar to those offered by the company.

  ''Next week, when I go back to Miami, I'll look at my notes and see if we can do business with a supermarket like this,'' said Craig Green, one of more than 700 people attending the U.S. Food & Agribusiness Exhibition, a trade show for American companies interested in doing business with Cuba.

  LOGISTICS

  ''Lots of the stuff they have here is coming from Spain and Canada,'' said Green, whose company already exports to Central and South America and most of the
  Caribbean. "If we could ship our products from Miami -- it could be very competitive. But I don't know all the logistics involved. There is . . . a learning curve involved before we can consider Cuba as a market.''

  President Fidel Castro, meanwhile, spent most of Friday meeting privately with U.S. agricultural representatives, business leaders and Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura, the highest-ranking official to attend the event. Participants said they socialized with Castro, discussing a wide range of topics, even as officials from Cuba's purchasing agency, Alimport, signed new deals.

  As of Friday afternoon, Cuba had signed about $25 million in commodities at the fair, which ends Monday. Today, dozens of U.S. firms are expected to register their trademarks in Cuba as part of the services offered at the exposition.

  ''If Cuba could do a similar type of exposition in the United States, I think that would attract as much interest over there,'' said Raúl Fernández, 47, who has relatives in New York. ''Our countries should be able to trade freely,'' said Fernández as he shopped at Palco. ``We are neighbors. Why do we have to continue to fight?''

  BETTER PRICES

  Even though the U.S. products available at the dollar stores are more expensive than Cuban products, they are still cheaper than those imported from farther away. At
  La Puntilla, a shopping center in Miramar, butter recently imported from Indianapolis-based Marsh International sells for $3.80 a pound, compared to $2.90 for a pound of Cuban butter. However butter imported from Canada and Spain is more expensive, at $4.10 a pound and $5 a pound, respectively.

  ''We need more products and better prices,'' said Vladimir Diez, 40, a computer technician, who spends $50 to $100 a month on groceries from the dollar stores.

  ''What this trade does is help the people here,'' said Diez, who has two children, ages 21 and 11, living in Miami. ``Politics is politics, but the population has to keep
  living.''