Mexico is the seventh-largest producer of oil in the world but it's committed to increasing the developing of alternative bio-fuels.
By 2024 the country wants to produce 35 percent of its energy from renewable sources. This is part of its commitment to the Paris climate change accord. Consequently, bio-fuel projects are now booming in the countryside.
(English) Dr.Tully Friedgut, Senior Economist, Orly Cactus Farm: "The - Opuntia, the Prickly pear is really a miraculous plant, and it can use relatively little water, certainly relatively to citrus, relative to mangos, relative to the kinds of plants that grow in subtropical climates such as Israel's is and we in our company, our dream is to harness science and the sun and with those two help create a world that is free of hunger of sickness and of poverty."
Nopales are spectacularly healthy type of cacti with a wide range of health benefits including their ability to aid in weight loss, prevent cancer, improve skin health, protect heart health, regulate and improve digestion, boost the immune system, optimize metabolic activity, build strong bones, cure insomnia, and reduce inflammation throughout the body.
ICARDA has released part one of a three-video series on cactus pear production, aimed at farmers in dry regions. The series promotes best-agronomic practices to improve productivity and enhance the quality of the crop at low cost.
Nopal, or Opuntia cacti, is a cactus eaten all throughout Mexico, known for its flavor and its nutritional value. But do we value its industry, production, and future? Through a trip from the farm to the table, we learn, revalue, and savor different dishes that this ancestral ingredient offers.
The nopal cactus grows extensively throughout Mexico, being especially abundant in the central Mexican arid and semi arid regions. In Mexico there are over 3,000,000 hectares (7,400,000 acres) of land used to cultivate nopal.
The cactus fruit is indeed full of valuable substances for our body and exceptionally sweet and tasty. The plant that produces it, is a prolific one that produces many fruits from every single shovel: the Opuntia ficus-indica.