Cactus pear biomass, a potential lignocellulose raw material for single cell protein production (SCP): a review.

The world s human population has increased by about 250% since the 1950s to the present, with an increase from 2.6 to 7 billion people and it is projected to grow from 7 to 9 billion people by 2042 according to the US Census Bureau. Some experts are uncertain whether the earth can support the present human population, let alone another 2 to 3 billion people (Holechek, 2007; Pimentel et al., 1994). Their concern centres around the heavy dependency on fossil fuels and the impact of climate change on food production. During the past decades agricultural production has risen in most developed countries. However, most developing countries are still suffering from hunger, malnutrition, food insecurity and food related diseases. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 12 million people die of hunger and starvation related diseases every year, half of whom are children under the age of 5 years (Israelidis, 2008). ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 3 Number 7 (2014) pp. 171-197 http://www.ijcmas.com