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Cactus Pear: A Promising Crop for Italy’s Dry Regions and Beyond


A startup in Italy is championing the use of cactus pear, known as Opuntia Ficus, as a solution to the challenges posed by global warming, drought, and plant disease in the country’s arid south. Wakonda, founded by Andrea Ortenzi and his friends in 2021, sees the cactus pear as a versatile and profitable crop, capable of yielding products such as soft drinks, flour, animal feed, and biofuel.

The cultivation of cactus pear is expanding globally, with multiple uses ranging from food to biofuel production. In Tunisia, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, and Chile, the plant plays a significant role in agriculture and provides income to many farmers.

Wakonda’s business model focuses on utilizing the prickly pads of the cactus to produce energy drinks, flour, and animal feed, while also incorporating a circular and ecological production system that transforms waste into methane gas for biofuel. The company plans to work with farmers in Italy’s southern regions, licensing out equipment and know-how to cultivate cactus pear in exchange for royalties.

Ortenzi’s vision is to plant 300 hectares of cactus pear by 2025, with the goal of replacing a significant portion of the olive trees destroyed by Xylella in southern Puglia. With over a million hectares of abandoned arable land in Italy due to climate change, Wakonda aims to demonstrate the potential of cactus pear as a sustainable and profitable agricultural solution.

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Photo credit www.westhawaiitoday.com

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