Bonn/Paris, December 2015 – Tunisian rarities such as prickly pear flour and prickly pear seed oil were presented by the Import Promotion Desk (IPD) on the Food Ingredients Europe (FiE) trade fair 2015 in Paris. From December 1 to December 3, the import promotion service provider presented suppliers of prickly pear products at its fair booth to the trading industry. The Tunisian product portfolio was complemented by producers of essential oils made from wildly harvested rosemary and myrrh.
For the first time the IPD introduced three carefully selected companies from Tunisia to the FIE, all of which were carefully selected and briefed for the European market. One of them was the exporter „Nopal Tunisie SA“, which offers a broad range of organically grown and certified products made from prickly pear. The extract made from pressed prickly pear fruit juice, for instance, makes for a natural red-to-violet food colouring for dairy products such as yoghurt or ice cream. A gluten-free flour obtained from prickly pear kernels is an excellent baking ingredient or sauce thickener.
The most exclusive product of the plant is prickly pear seed oil also offered by the manufacturer „Omega Tunisie“. The valuable oil is high in essential fatty acids, especially linoleic acid. Due to its versatility the plant is also called the „sultan of fruit” in Tunisia. „Our presentation of such exotic specialties in particular”, says Dr. Julia Hoffmann, head of the Import Promotion Desk, “gives interested importers the opportunity to expand their product portfolio.”
