Spineless prickly pear: the life-bringing weapon in the war on desertification (Willem Van Cotthem / Joe Franke)

Visiting the Nordeste Province of Brazil years ago and admiring the huge plantations of the spineless prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica var. inermis), I started collecting documentation on this remarkable variety of the ‘nopal’ (its Central American name).

Gradually, I got convinced of its extraordinary value for combating desertification.  It simply deserves to be introduced and grown at the largest scale in all the drylands (food, fruits, fodder, limiting erosion, growing with a minimal quantity of water, producing a maximum of biomass, easy to collect and handle, …).

2010-03-12 : Spineless prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica var. inermis) – (Photo WVC)

A couple of days ago I received this email of Joe FRANKE

“I’m a restoration ecologist based in New Mexico, USA. I have a long standing interest in Opuntia sp. for food, fodder and ecological restoration use, and was thus very interested to read your article on this topic which was posted on your very enlightening drylands blog.

I’ll be working with a couple of new NGOs in Mali on some revegetation and water projects, and would very much like to know if you’re in contact with anybody who’s doing similar work in the region, and particularly if any of them are using Opuntia. My main concerns are about the potential invasiveness of the species that have been used in the past in places like Australia. I’m interested in looking at all species in the taxa, and it seems that most of the work that’s been done has been with O. ficus-indica.

Any resources that you can suggest would be very much appreciated, and I look forward to staying in contact with you about our respective projects.

Regards,

Joe Franke”

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Here is my reply to Joe :

Dear Joe,

Thanks for contacting me.

I am convinced that the spineless Opuntia ficus-indica var. inermis should become THE PLANT to combat desertification on all continents. This spineless variety has so many qualities (benefits) that it deserves to be introduced in all the drylands, see also IFAD’s publication on my desertification blog :

  1. As forage,
  2. As a vegetable where young cladodes are consumed fresh, mainly by Mexicans,
  3. As a fruit where a sustainable horticultural system is achieved in several countries (Italy, Tunisia, South Africa, Mexico, Chile),
  4. For producing carminic acid, the natural red colorant from cochineal, accepted by health authorities worldwide.
  5. Processed foods: with a potential market for fruit and nopalitos to produce concentrated foods, juices, liquors, semi-processed and processed vegetables. Food supplements and the cosmetics industry might be a significant source of income.
  6. Medicinal Applications: promising results for the treatment of gastritis, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, and for obesity.

However, as with every “new” thing, people are always a bit afraid to encounter difficulties.  They are coming up with a lot of questions, like “Will this be an invasive species?”. Yes, Opuntia ficus-indica was invasive in Australia, but it was the prickly pear with spines that was introduced, so that no predators were able to attack it.

On the contrary, the spineless variety is completely different and inoffensive. It can be grazed by livestock, even overgrazed and destroyed.  It can be handled very easily.

Please have a look at some You Tube-videos, showing the successful plantations of Opuntia (nopales) in Central America, e.g. Mexico. I have seen huge plantations in Brazil. So, what is possible in that part of the world should also be applicable in Africa and Asia :

Opuntia VIDEOS

Please go to Google for a search on “spineless Opuntia” and find 4720 references on this fantastic variety of the prickly pear, which shows the great interest of so many people.

Let me express the hope that a multitude of development workers will pay attention to the enormous possibilities of this wonderful plant.

I don’t have any information on the possible use of the nopal in Mali. Maybe you will be the first to introduce it, except for the couple of pads I was offering to my friend Marc PILLE for his project in that country.

Wishing you a lot of success in Mali.

Warm regards,

Willem

PS. Please read also the very interesting publications of JP POTGIETER, e.g. :

The influence of environmental factors on spineless cactus pear …

File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat
by JP Potgieter – 2007 – Related articles
The influence of environmental factors on spineless cactus pear (Opuntia spp.) fruit yield in Limpopo Province, South Africa by. Johannes Petrus Potgieter …
etd.uovs.ac.za/ETD-db//theses/available/etd…/PotgieterJP.pdf – Similar

and

UTILIZATION OF OPUNTIA FOR FORAGE IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

Spineless opuntia plantations in Texas must be very well protected against …. Potgieter (1997 pers. comm.) in South Africa obtained 40 ton of pads from …
http://www.fao.org/DOCREP/005/Y2808E/y2808e0a.htm – Cached 

 

Author: Willem Van Cotthem

Honorary Professor of Botany, University of Ghent (Belgium). Scientific Consultant for Desertification and Sustainable Development.