Vital forest fungi ‘being plundered by foragers’

RUTHLESS foragers are damaging the environment by stripping ancient woodlands of edible mushrooms, officials claim.

There is huge demand for the fungi, but the pickers are depriving insects and animals of a vital food source, and damaging the trees which rely on fungi to protect their roots. The large-scale foragers are targeting Epping Forest, according to the City of London Corporation which owns and manages the forest.

Different types of wild mushroom play a key role in Epping Forest’s ecology and are a major reason it has protected status, including as a Site of Special Scientific Interest, the corporation said.

Since 2014, 18 people have been prosecuted for foraging, while forest keepers often issue verbal warnings. In the most recent incident, a 108lb (49kg) haul of mushrooms was seized.

Wild mushrooms can attract high prices: just 100g (3.5oz) of dried morels sell for around £54, fresh Trompette de La Mort sell for £18 for 250g (8oz) and fresh Pied de Mouton £11 for 250g. Fungi have flourished in the wet conditions of 2019.

Graeme Doshi-Smith, of the Corporation’s Epping Forest and Commons Committee, said: ‘Fungi play an incredibly important role in the delicate balance of biodiversity which makes Epping Forest special. I urge visitors to leave the fungi how they find them... untouched. Hoovering up fungi on such a large scale is ecologically damaging and is unsustainable.’

Epping Forest, London and Essex’s largest green space, has more than a million trees and is home to around 500 rare and endangered insect species. Fungi can protect trees from soil-borne disease and pests by producing antibiotic compounds and out-competing harmful fungi.