OIL CONTENT AND FATTY ACID COMPOSITION OF CACTUS PEAR SEED COMPARED WITH COTTON AND GRAPE SEED

Cactus pear is a drought tolerant crop with low agronomic requirements and high water use efficiency. The fruits contain a large number of seeds. The seed of 11 commercial cactus pear cultivars were analyzed for oil content and fatty acid composition. The oil content was relatively low, with a very low palmitic acid content of between 11.4 and 15.9%, considerably lower than that of cotton oil. Linoleic acid content varied between 61.4 and 68.9%. The alpha-linolenic acid of all the cultivars was less than 1%. The oleic acid content varied between 12.4 and 16.5% (lower than that of cotton seed). Unsaturated fatty acids made up about 80% of all fatty acids. Therefore, although the oil content of the seed was relatively low, the fatty acid composition indicates that it has potential as an oil for the health market.