Fungo - Verdure 

Description

The mushroom is either a pluricellular eukaryote or a single cell. This notion includes fungi, oomycetes, chitridiomycetes and mycitozoa.

Origins

Recent archaeological research reveals that wild edible mushrooms were collected and consumed in China 6,000 years ago, and in Chile 13,000 years ago. The Greeks and Romans also collected mushrooms from the forest, proved by the name itself Caesar's mushroom (or Amanita Caesarea).

Characteristics

Its cells, supplied with a cell wall, are immobile and thrive on the absorption of organic molecules from the parasitized medium. The exact composition of the mushrooms depends on their species. But they all consist essentially of water (80 to 90%), the remaining 10% is made up of minerals, carbohydrates, lecithin, proteins and vitamins, therefore it is a whole food. In tropical Africa, edible wild mushrooms are widely used foods, and can replace meat or fish in times of scarcity. The amount of really venous mushrooms is very limited, most of them are harmless or irrelevant. On the other hand, various wild mushrooms such as chanterelles, porcini mushrooms, or other cultivated species such as the Paris mushroom or black mushroom, have a remarkable flavor and are marketed on a large scale, either locally, nationally or internationally.

Other Facts

Certain mushrooms can be marketed at very high prices, these can be a wide variety of truffles or even the matsutake, the Asian pine mushroom.

Production

The mushroom, used as a condiment or garnish, has a worldwide production of 96 kilos per second or 3 million tons per year. 40% of this seasoning vegetable is produced in China, 35% in Europe and 13% in the United States. The Paris mushroom, or common mushroom, produced mostly in China (69%) is the most sold in Europe, for example, Germans consume about 3 Kg. per person per year. France produces only 140,000 tons, which come from harvesting in the region of Saumur. Only 27,000 tons of fresh mushrooms are delivered from the harvest, while the rest of the production goes to the processing industries.