The peak mushroom season is open in France. Boletes, chanterelles, porcini mushrooms… To pick up these autumn pleasures without risking food poisoning, the editorial staff lists all the precautions to take.
- The main mushroom picking season starts in September.
- In 2021, 4 people died following the confusion of an edible species with a toxic species.
The great mushroom picking season opens in September, but it is not without its risks. Each year, more than a thousand people are victims of poisoning in France. “If (mushrooms) are popular dishes, some species are nonetheless toxic or even deadly for humans. (…) Be careful!”, warns the National Food Safety Agency (ANSES) in a press release.
Since the beginning of September 2022, “more than sixty cases have already been identified”. In question ? Pickers confuse an edible species with a poisonous species or consume a mushroom”in poor condition or undercooked”.
Good practices to avoid intoxication
To ward off the risk of food poisoning, ANSES, the poison control centers and the Directorate General for Health are recalling the main rules to follow :
- only collect mushrooms that you know perfectly well: “Come highly poisonous mushrooms are very similar to edible species”, they recall;
- if in doubt about the identification of a harvested mushroom, do not eat it before verification by a specialist such as a pharmacist or a member of a mycology association;
- pick only specimens in good condition, which have finished forming, and “take the entire mushroom (stem and cap) to allow identification“, if necessary ;
- picked mushrooms should never be eaten by young children and should always be eaten cooked (15 minutes in boiling water or about 30 minutes in a frying pan);
- do not trust mushroom recognition apps on smartphones”due to the high risk of error”.
Finally, do not forget to wash your hands after picking. ANSES also recommends always taking photos of the specimens before they are cooked in order to enable the Poison Control Center to quickly identify the fungus in the event of poisoning, and therefore the appropriate treatment.
Poisoning: the signs to recognize
The first symptoms observed during mushroom poisoning are digestive with abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. “The time to onset of symptoms is variable, most often a few hours after consumption, but it can be longer and exceed 12 hours.”, says ANSES.
The state of health of an intoxicated person can deteriorate very quickly. Other symptoms such as dizziness, blurred vision or tremors may appear. You must therefore immediately call a poison control center at the slightest sign after consuming mushrooms and keep the remains of the harvest if they exist. And in the event of vital distress, such as loss of consciousness, you must contact 15 or 112 without delay.
