JIMENA (Agencies) Sunday marked the end of the 2010/2011 mushroom season, which has been classified as the best this unique enterprise has had yet. Owing principally to the kind of weather so far, the Lonja Micológica has seen some 40,000 kilos of a variety of mushrooms sold at the plant. Most of it was the star product of the wild mushrooms available in Los Alcornocales Nature Park: the chantarelle (photo), which fetched an average price of €6/kilo. This represents production of €240,000. Other varieties have also been sold there but never in similar quantities.>
In offering his opinion on the season, Mayor Pascual Collado said he was pleased that this excellent season coincided with the stae of unemployment and financial crisis, as collecting mushrooms became at least one way of complementing many families' incomes, a fact that has also been true in many of the area's villages.
More wholesalers
The number of buyers also increased, which has made it easier this year to match supply with demand. On some days, this reached the 1,000 kilos per session and meant, too, that with buyers coming from all over the country prices have been more stable throughout the season, a fact that has allowed gatherers to avoid the need to sell through other means.
Sustainability
Aside from the two stable jobs the market provided, Mayor Collado sees other less tangible benefits emanating from it in the short term but more important in the long. The concept of collecting wild mushrooms in a les ggressive way that it used to be is gaining ground. For example, the use of plastic bags has decreased exponentially, as has collecting samples that are too young and therefore not allowing for the production of the spores that are necessary for future seaons.
"There is a long way to go yet," says Collado, "but it is evident that people are becoming increasingly aware of the message that i is necessary to be les aggressive with our environment if we want any kind of future sustainability." This in turn offers added value to the 'Mushrooms of Los Alcornocales Nature Park' brand that also becomes a guarantee for the future.
Closure
The season closes when the chantarelle begins to die down in the mountains, and there fewer buyer in the post-Christmas season. It is still possible to gather mushrooms in th hills but in quantities that do not merit keeping the market service open.
In offering his opinion on the season, Mayor Pascual Collado said he was pleased that this excellent season coincided with the stae of unemployment and financial crisis, as collecting mushrooms became at least one way of complementing many families' incomes, a fact that has also been true in many of the area's villages.
More wholesalers
The number of buyers also increased, which has made it easier this year to match supply with demand. On some days, this reached the 1,000 kilos per session and meant, too, that with buyers coming from all over the country prices have been more stable throughout the season, a fact that has allowed gatherers to avoid the need to sell through other means.
Sustainability
Aside from the two stable jobs the market provided, Mayor Collado sees other less tangible benefits emanating from it in the short term but more important in the long. The concept of collecting wild mushrooms in a les ggressive way that it used to be is gaining ground. For example, the use of plastic bags has decreased exponentially, as has collecting samples that are too young and therefore not allowing for the production of the spores that are necessary for future seaons.
"There is a long way to go yet," says Collado, "but it is evident that people are becoming increasingly aware of the message that i is necessary to be les aggressive with our environment if we want any kind of future sustainability." This in turn offers added value to the 'Mushrooms of Los Alcornocales Nature Park' brand that also becomes a guarantee for the future.
Closure
The season closes when the chantarelle begins to die down in the mountains, and there fewer buyer in the post-Christmas season. It is still possible to gather mushrooms in th hills but in quantities that do not merit keeping the market service open.
No comments:
Post a Comment