The Candy Craze That Almost Wiped Out the Barrel Cactus

Image:UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA LIBRARIES, SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

When Italian confectioner Dominick Donofrio arrived in Phoenix Arizona in 1891 he saw the abundant round barrel cactus, known by Native Americans as visnaga and he had a vision of candy made from it. He also saw dollar signs. The process for making the candies was labour intensive but produced a treat that was something like a gumdrop, with a sugar crust and a gelatinous core. Donofrio fabricated a fake historic origin for the candies and packaged them in boxes illustrated with Spanish missions and sandal-wearing Native Americans. The candy didn't taste very good but it was a novelty and the company produced 15,000 pounds of the stuff in 1920 alone. Other companies soon jumped on the visnaga bandwagon, driving the round barrel cactus to the point of extinction until 2014 when the region was granted federal protection under the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks Conservation Act. Cactus candy remains an Arizona novelty but these days it is mostly made from the more abundant prickly pear fruit.

More: Gastro Obscura

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