Why you should skip the ‘acitrón’ sweet in your Rosca de Reyes

For centuries, acitrón, a crystallized saccharine of a translucent yellowish color, was a staple successful accepted Mexican dishes specified arsenic Rosca de Reyes, chiles en nogada and determination sweets and stews.

However, it is present seldom recovered successful Mexican households due to the fact that the cactus known arsenic “biznaga barril de acitrón” (Ferocactus histrix), which provides the constituent for acitrón, has been overexploited and is astatine hazard of extinction. 

The tube cactus “biznaga barril de acitrón,” autochthonal to cardinal and bluish Mexico, is simply a collectors’ favourite and truthful overexploited and connected the verge of extinction. (Mexican Senate)

Mainly recovered successful the Bajío and bluish borderline states, the tube cactus is connected the verge of extinction successful the wild. Due to its scarcity, it was listed successful 2005 arsenic a protected taxon nether NOM-059.

“Mexico is the halfway of root for the cactus household and besides the state with the top diversity,” said María del Rocío Azcárraga Rosette, caput of the Botany Laboratory astatine the Faculty of Higher Studies (FES) Cuautitlán of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). Unfortunately, she added, due to the fact that definite taxon are highly valued by collectors, they are removed from their habitats, leaving lone juvenile populations that are incapable of regenerating. 

Azcárraga explained that the tube cactus cannot turn oregon reproduce astatine the complaint demanded by the market, nor tin it withstand changeless harvesting. This means that to get acitrón, plants that instrumentality years oregon centuries to turn are destroyed, which reduces their populations and damages arid and semi-arid ecosystems. 

“The effect is sold for 10 pesos astatine marketplace due to the fact that it is collected successful the field, but down that is simply a cactus that takes centuries to regenerate,” she said. 

The concern changed successful 2015 erstwhile Azcárraga began to make a method to accelerate the germination of the cacti. Today, the botanical plot astatine the FES Cuautitlán has a slope of much than 1,500 specimens of the tube cactus, immoderate of which are already 8 years old. To integrate them into the wild, scientists request to fto them turn until they scope 20 centimeters — which volition instrumentality astir different decennary — and their spines are overmuch much developed to let them to support themselves from predators. 

Azcárraga has said that successful summation to being accessible and economical, her method tin beryllium replicated to prevention different endangered species.

@elagroanalista 😱 El ACITRÓN está PROHIBIDO… ¿Sabes por qué? 🎂🌵 ¿Qué está pasando con la ROSCA DE REYES? #agricultura #alimentos #ciencia ♬ sonido archetypal – El Agroanalista

“It is our work arsenic scientists to question utile and accessible alternatives that the assemblage tin easy replicate,” helium stated.

Thanks to Azcárraga’s work, the tube cacti could beryllium reintegrated into quality successful a fewer years and yet instrumentality sustainably to Mexican households. In the meantime, authorities and scientists person urged radical to refrain from buying Roscas de Reyes that see acitrón — whose merchantability is prohibited by instrumentality successful Mexico — and urge alternatives similar effect paste (ate) and crystallized fruits similar pineapple and cherries.

With reports from UNAM Global