Vegetable

Opuntia ficus indica

A normally spineless variety of Opuntia cactus with large fruits growing on each pad. This species of cactus is grown world-wide to feed people, livestock and to restore degraded soils.

Opuntia monacantha

Opuntia monacantha, commonly known as drooping prickly pear, cochineal prickly pear, or Barbary fig, is a species of plant in the family Cactaceae native to South America.

Opuntia cochenillifera is a species of cactus in the subfamily Opuntioideae. It may have been endemic to Mexico, but has been widely introduced. The first description was in 1753 by Carl Linnaeus as Cactus cochenillifer. Philip Miller renamed it as Opuntia cochenillifera in 1768.

Moringa oleifera

Moringa oleifera is a fast-growing, drought-resistant tree of the family Moringaceae, native to the Indian subcontinent and used extensively in South and Southeast Asia. Common names include moringa, drumstick tree (from the long, slender, triangular seed-pods), horseradish tree[3] (from the taste of the roots, which resembles horseradish), or malunggay (as known in maritime or archipelagic areas in Asia).

It is widely cultivated for its young seed pods and leaves, used as vegetables and for traditional herbal medicine. It is also used for water purification. Although listed as an invasive species in several countries, M. oleifera has "not...

prosopis velutina

Sue in az, CC BY-SA 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/>, via Wikimedia Commons

Prosopis velutina, commonly known as velvet mesquite, is a small to medium-sized tree. It is a legume adapted to a dry, desert climate. Though considered to be a noxious weed in states outside its natural range, it plays a vital role in the ecology of the Sonoran Desert.

myrtillocactus geometrizans

Myrtillocactus geometrizans is a large shrubby cactus growing to 4–5 m tall, with candelabra-like branching on mature plants.

Nopal Cactus: A Sustainable Food of the Future

Maybe you’ve tried nopal cactus, and perhaps you loved it. Or perhaps, you couldn’t get around its unique texture, however, nopal might just be the food of the future. At least, that’s what the UN is claiming. This sustainable food is gaining attention in helping solve food insecurity.