Truffle Underground News Event

Magical Mystery Tour

10 Jul 2011

BY KIRSTEN LAWSON
22 Jun, 2011

So much is at stake and so little is known in the romantic world of truffles, and for some, it's bringing heartbreak. As the Australian truffle industry beds down with a fair dose of excitement, but also some major disappointment it is now coming to terms with the discovery that some truffle plantations may have been compromised by a species of no-good truffle. From paddock to plate: Bryan Martin on truffles, scrambled eggs, and truffle roasts The truffle industry seems bathed in a spell of imprecision at the best of times. Some growers switch instantly to vague when you ask about yields; they discuss the science of truffles in most uncertain terms; they stud their conservation with allusions to the mysteries that abound in this most romantic and fraught of industries. But right now there's an extra layer of bafflement, because many growers are sitting on truffieres that should be reaching maturity. But while some are producing as much as 40kg a hectare, others have so far entirely failed to produce anything. And no one can figure out why. ''The production is nothing like we anticipated,'' Australian Truffle Association president Graham Duell says. ''And we don't understand the reasons. Most of our production is coming from eight or 10 truffieres [of 200 around the country], and that leaves something like another 30 or 40 that are getting a kilogram or ones and twos. And the great majority that are getting nothing.'' The answers are expected to be a mix of environment, soil structure, management and truffle mating types. But in news set to rock the industry, another factor is coming into play. It appears that some of the trees were inoculated with the wrong truffle species. Instead of Tuber melanosporum, some growers have unwittingly planted Tuber brumale. This is not news some truffle nurseries - most of which buy the inoculum from Europe - are welcoming. Read the remainder of the story here...