Fodder nopal in México: from the 16th to the 20th century

Authors

  • Marco A. Anaya-Pérez
  • Refugio Bautista-Zane

Abstract

Since the end of the 20th Century, nopal (Opuntia spp) has been
one of the most studied fodder plants by different disciplines;
however, little has been documented regarding the use of nopal
as fodder. Using the historiographic method, we reviewed sources
written by chroniclers, travelers and scientists, in order to analyze
the importance and use of nopal as fodder from the 16th to the
20th Centuries. We suggest that its use was a reflection of the
need for feeding livestock in arid areas of the country and in
those where drought periods are very lengthy, making the wild
Opuntia an excellent food for livestock. It is also important to
point out that in spite of the current importance that fodder
nopal has, production has been stagnant for the past 10 years. It
is possible that the 3 million hectares with wild nopal there are in
the country are the reason why many livestock producers are not
interested in producing or buying fodder nopal, since they have
it in the wild. Therefore, a culture of fodder nopal production
does not exist.

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Published

2008-06-06

How to Cite

Anaya-Pérez, M. A., & Bautista-Zane, R. (2008). Fodder nopal in México: from the 16th to the 20th century. Agricultura, Sociedad Y Desarrollo, 5(2), 167–183. Retrieved from https://revista-asyd.org/index.php/asyd/article/view/1078

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 2 (2008): Agricultura Sociedad y Desarrollo

Section

Artículos

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