Adansonia-Consulting

Wild Mushrooms

Promotion and marketing of tropical wild edible mushrooms

Wild edible mushrooms are abundant during the rainy season in the tropics and particularly plentiful in the Miombo woodlands of southeastern Africa. Non-wood forest products (NWFP) play an important role for the livelihood and resilience of rural communities through their contribution to food and nutrition security (self-consumption) and by offering an interesting marketing potential. Additional income generated by the development of a wild edible mushrooms value chain may incite the local population to be more engaged in the conservation of the miombo ecosystems.

Most of the Miombo trees are ectomycorrhizal: Their roots live in symbiosis with mushroom mycelia for mutual benefits. Many mushrooms from the Miombo are edible and have high nutritional and energy values. To prevent the risk of poisoning, mushrooms from exotic tree plantations should not be picked as some resemble some well-known edible mushrooms. The risk of unsustainable use of mushrooms is low provided that immature mushrooms are not harvested.

Fresh and dried mushrooms are frequently sold at local and national markets and along roadsides. However, their marketing is subject to several constraints: poorly developed market chain (low organisational structure and little networking of the actors amongst each other, missing engagement of private sector and little developed entrepreneurship), long transport distances and access constraints during rainy season, poor quality and conditioning of the product (drying technique, storage facilities, and hygienic aspects).

The following consultancies have been carried out:

Tanzania Assessment of the potential of wild edible mushrooms in the Miombo woodlands of the Selous Niassa Wildlife Corridor (SNWC) for the livelihood improvement of the local population (1. study); marketing potential of wild edible mushrooms in the SNWC (2. study); Elaboration of mushroom flyer (Southern Tanzania)GTZ7/ADAP92008/09
Inventory and marketing potential of wild mushrooms in Miombo woodlands of Western Tanzania (1. study; 2. study; 3. study).
Elaboration of mushroom leaflet (Western Tanzania) 		ADAP9/WCS202020-2024

Copies of the mission reports may be obtained at bloesch@swissonline.ch

Dr. Urs Bloesch is a certified wild mushroom controller (VAPKO) who checks wild mushrooms for the public at the commune of Evilard-Macolin in Switzerland. Furthermore, he offers mushroom excursions for interested persons (www.natur-schule-see-land.ch) and school classes. Dr. Urs Bloesch is a member of a Swiss mycological society (www.seelandpilze.ch).

7 Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit
9 Association for the Development of Protected Areas


Last update: 20.06.2024 Visitors: 236610