Gibsons, BC, Canada–North American Reishi Ltd (Nammex) announced the findings from a survey commissioned by the company involving 10,000 people in the U.S. Respondents were questioned about mushroom terminology.
The survey follows Nammex's filing of a Citizen Petition, in which the company requested that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) "address the mislabeling of dietary supplements and functional foods as 'mushroom' or containing 'mushrooms' when they contain other fungal parts, and do not contain 'mushrooms' as claimed, or fail to disclose added grain ingredients," as WholeFoods Magazine previously reported.
Skye Chilton, Nammex CEO, explained, “We commissioned this survey as a logical extension of our campaign for clarity and accuracy in mushroom product labeling. While the industry debates whether or not it’s acceptable to state or imply that mycelium-containing products are mushrooms, we thought knowing what consumers actually think was important information for the industry to have.”
Consumers view on mushroom terminology
Survey participants were asked if they knew what a “fruiting body” was, and 71.5% said they did not know. Respondents were then shown a photo of a variety of mushrooms (see image above) and asked “what are these?” Nine out of 10 (90.1%) of respondents identified them as “mushrooms” while 12.3% identified them as fungi, and 2.8% as “fruiting body.”
Respondents were then shown a photo of mycelium growing on a grain substrate in a plastic bag and asked “is this a mushroom?” The finding: 20.7% identified the myceliated grain as a mushroom, and 79.3% indicated “not a mushroom.” Nammex reported that the main reasons given by the people who identified the myceliated grain as a mushroom were the context of the survey or knowing mushrooms grow from mycelium from having used mushroom growing kits.
“This data confirms that the vast majority of consumers have a fairly specific idea of what constitutes a mushroom, and it’s not myceliated grain,” Skye said. “As we have said all along, to the industry and to FDA with our Citizen Petition asking for labeling clarity, it’s essential to be fair to consumers and not imply they are getting something they are not when they buy a product. It’s not only ethical, it protects the industry from losing their trust.”
The debate on mushrooms
In June 2023, after Nammex submitted the petition, the makers of Host Defense Mushrooms, Fungi Perfecti, LLC, along with M2 Ingredients Inc., Gourmet Mushrooms, Inc., and Monterey Mushrooms Inc., jointly issued an open letter response to the petition. Their goal was to express a show of unity to "emphasize the importance of conveying scientifically accurate information to the public, to FDA, and to other thought leaders in the field." These companies maintained that the Nammex petition "obfuscates and misrepresents the use of well-established mycological definitions that impact responsible consumer messaging about mushroom products."
