A. Species
Scientific name: Tricholoma matsutake
Common name(s): Matsusake mushroom, [Literally 'pine mushroom' in Japanese]
Global IUCN Red List Threat Status: Vulnerable
B. Location of use
Geographic location(s):
- Yunnan
Country/Region: China / Yunnan Province
C. Scale of assessment
Scale of assessment: Sub-national / Sub-region / Sub-State
Name/Details of location: Yunnan Province / esp Kunming and Diqing Prefectures (Shangri-la)
D. Timescale of use
Start Year: 1998
End Year: 2005
E. Information about the use
How is the wild species sourced?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat and Wild species sourced from significantly modified habitat
Type of use: Extractive
Practice of use: Gathering/Cutting/Collecting terrestrial plants and fungi or their products from the wild
Lethal or non-lethal: Non-Lethal
Does this use involve take/extraction of: Only parts or products of the organism
Purpose(s) of end use: Food and feed
Motivation of use: Basic subsistence and Income generation from trade (individual/household/community)
Is this use legal or illegal?: Legal under national law
F. Information about the Users
Which stakeholder(s) does the record primarily focus on?: Local people, National / local government and National / local private sector
G. Information about the sustainability of use
Is there evidence that the use is having an impact on the target species?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat and Wild species sourced from significantly modified habitat
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an ecological perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: this study
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: The matsutake harvesting, trade and export industry appears to have been sustainable, historically, in-so-far that a substantial crop continues to be harvested in Yunnan each year, with no evident change in harvest effort. The availability of harvestable fruiting bodies is tied strongly to weather conditions within suitable habitat regions, and providing fruiting bodies can set spores, harvesting does not seem to be impacting availability. Sustainability is, however, strongly linked to best practice harvest techniques, which should not damage the underlying mycelium. Also, strong market demand and high export values are driving an increasing demand, warranting close attention to future sustainability. NB: the annual harvest is highly variable and so it is difficult to establish any clear trend effect on the natural population.
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an economic perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: this study
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: Historically, the matsutake harvesting, trade and export industry appears to have been sustainable. Sustainability is, however, strongly linked to best practice harvest techniques, which should not damage the underlying mycelium. Strong market demand and high export values are driving an increasing demand, warranting close attention to future sustainability.
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a social perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: this study
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: Historically, the matsutake harvesting, trade and export industry appears to have been sustainable. Sustainability is, however, strongly linked to best practice harvest techniques, which should not damage the underlying mycelium. Strong market demand and high export values are driving an increasing demand, warranting close attention to future sustainability.
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a human health perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: this study
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: excellent source of protein
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an animal health/welfare perspective been recorded?: not recorded
Recommendations provided in the record to maintain or enhance the sustainability of the use of the target species
The study concludes by explaining that aside from taxation and quota control, the [Chinese] government does not participate in the planning and systematic management of the resource. To properly manage matsutake in Yunnan requires a comprehensive approach that considers all components of matsutake trade and ecology, including the stakeholders.
Record source
Information about the record source: scientific_pub
Date of publication/issue/production: 2008-01-01T00:00:00+0000
Source Reference(s):
Date of record entry: 2022-12-29