Adapting Our Agriculture

“Cactus pear  (Opuntia spp.) are highly productive yet have crop water demands that are approximately 20% that of traditional crops due to their ability to perform crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM).”
- (Neupane et al., 2021)

“Opuntia spp. have a great capacity to withstand severe dry conditions and are ideal for responding to global environmental changes. Their root characteristics avoid wind and rain erosion, encouraging their growth in degraded areas.”
- Cactusnetwork.org

“The use of Opuntia as innovative alternative feed would render animal production systems more sustainable.”
- (Pastorelli et al., 2022)

Issues Addressed by Opuntia Farming

Water Scarcity

Opuntia has 16-28% the crop water demands of traditional crops. (Neupane et al., 2021) Best watered using drip irrigation tape evenly distributing water and fertilizer to its root systems, it thereby loses significantly less water to evaporation in high heat environments.

Opuntia is uniquely capable of storing large amounts of water even among other succulent plant species. By means of its crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) photosynthetic process, it is able to convert water and CO2 to dry matter more efficiently than C3 and C4 photosynthetic plants. CAM plants (such as agave and yucca) are able to retain their water during the day, by only opening its stomata at night when temperatures are lower and transpiration less severe, a process known as autotrophic respiration.

Climate Resilience

Opuntia ficus indica is especially resilient to extreme temperatures and more importantly: drought. For states like California, Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico, drought is getting increasingly severe and temperatures growing more extreme. Many of our traditional crops such as corn and alfalfa are incapable of adapting to such conditions. Arid and semi arid regions are seeing far higher temperature increases than the global average, with predictions indicating more severe drought conditions over 30% of the global average. (Neupane et al, 2021)

Desertification

Opuntia is highly productive low input perennial crop, with a wide spread root structure that is capable of retaining more water and organic carbon in the soil than traditional crops. These roots increase soil stabilization, water infiltration, and especially effective at reducing the rates of soil respiration, thus reducing CO2 emissions released back into the atmosphere. The cacti’s large pads and tall growing structure also provide a strong and lasting vegetative cover against erosion, a leading factor in land degradation.

Fertilizer is only needed in scarce amounts and is distributed through drip irrigation directly into the soil, preventing unnecessary waste and risks of runoff. Such benefits can be applied not only for farming potentialities, but for desert reclamation projects to improve soil health in otherwise

Opuntia has been found to be a useful crop for rangeland rehabilitation, improving soil quality and providing favorable conditions for less resistant species to establish. The ecosystem services provided by these tall growing nopal support pollinators and bird species, and provide valuable shade species on the ground. Their general structure and high water content also proves highly resistance to fire, notable for use as fire breaks.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

High densities of Opuntia crop are capable of sequestering as much carbon as forests. At varying densities and water input, research has suggested Opuntia orchards could sequester as much as 30-70 tons of CO2 per hectare per year depending on planting densities.

Reduced methane emissions have also been associated with the inclusion of Opuntia into cattle and other ruminant diets. (Silva et al., 2025)

Opuntia’s carbon sequestration potential is especially impressive in it’s creation of Soil Inorganic Carbon. Where most plant’s carbon capture is temporary, releasing it back into the atmosphere during decomposition, Nopal cacti are also capable of storing this carbon permanently, in the form of calcium carbonate, a.k.a. limestone, a unique process possessed by Opuntia. This is however not a significant mechanism for atmospheric carbon sequestration due to this particular chemical process pulling carbon from Soil Organic Carbon stocks.

(Below Image: Electron micrograph of calcium carbonate (calcite limestone) crystals in the Opuntia plant.)

Notable Opuntia Research and Information