Immature Opuntia ficus-indica Peel By-Product as Mayonnaise Additive and Natural Anticoccidial Drug

In recent years, the valorization of food by-products has attracted increased interest in the scientific community for ecological and economic reasons. Opuntia ficus-indica (OFI) peels are the primary by-products of prickly pears. Several studies claim that the beneficial bioactive compounds are concentrated in the fruit’s peel. Therefore, the present investigation aimed to study the immature OFI peel as a natural antioxidant in mayonnaise and its use as a natural treatment against coccidiosis, which is the main disease of broiler chickens. The findings confirmed that OFI peels are a source of phenolic compounds, including total phenolic compounds, flavonoids, tannins, and carotenoids (21.01 ± 0.33, 1.12 ± 0.28, 10.25 ± 0.10 mg equivalent standard/g, and 5.62 ± 0.53 mg β-carotene equivalent/100 g, respectively), having strong antioxidant activities over 87 percent (DPPH radical, iron chelation power, β-carotene bleaching). Using the rancimat test, OFI extract improves the mayonnaise’s stability for 2.5 h. Immature OFI peel extracts recorded a notable destruction rate of Eimeria oocysts. The current study promoted the use of immature OFI peel extracts as a natural food additive and as an antiparasitic treatment substitute.