The food poisoning outbreak, which killed two people and sickened 51 people, highlights how little is known about morel mushrooms and the risks of preparing this popular and expensive delicacy.
The FDA Investigation of morels After an outbreak of severe illness linked to Dave’s Sushi in Bozeman, Montana in late March and April. An investigation found that undercooked or raw morels were likely the culprit, prompting the agency to issue its first guidelines for cooking morels.
“The potentially disease-causing toxins found in morels are not fully understood. However, using proper preparation steps, such as cooking, toxin levels can be reduced,” the FDA guidance says. states.
Still, the risk remains, the FDA says. “Proper preparation and cooking of morels can reduce the risk of disease, but there is no guarantee of safety even if cooking steps are followed before consumption.”
Montana Department of Health spokesman John Ebert said public health information and medical literature about morels is limited. Additionally, samples of morel mushrooms taken from Dave’s Sushi did not detect any specific toxins, pathogens, pesticides, or volatile or non-volatile organic compounds in the mushrooms.
Dave’s Sushi owner Aaron Parker said morels are a “luxury item.” Morels typically cost $40 per pound during the spring and fall seasons, he said, but morels purchased out of season can cost closer to $80 per pound.
Many acclaimed recipe books tell you how to sauté morels to preserve the sought-after earthy flavor. Parker said Dave’s sometimes poured a boiling marinade over the raw mushrooms before serving them. Parker said his own research has found that the safest way to cook morels is to boil them for 10 to 30 minutes.
Parker said he reached out to chefs across the country and found that many were just as surprised as he was to learn about the toxicity of morels.
“They didn’t know that morels had this kind of inherent risk factor, regardless of preparation,” Parker said.
According to FDA food regulations, most of the more than 5,000 fleshy mushroom species native to North America have not been tested for toxicity. Of those, 15 are lethal and 60 are poisonous both raw and cooked, including “pseudo” morels that resemble spongy edible morels, but at least 40 are toxic when eaten raw. However, it is safe when cooked.
of Mycological Society of North AmericaThe national nonprofit organization, whose members include mushroom experts, recorded 1,641 cases of mushroom poisoning and 17 deaths from 1985 to 2006. 129 of these poisonings are believed to have been caused by morels, but no deaths were reported.
Marian Maxwell, outreach director for the Seattle-based Puget Sound Mycological Society, said cooking breaks down the mushroom’s chitin (the same compound found in shellfish’s exoskeletons), which helps destroy toxins. Stated. Maxwell said morel mushrooms may naturally contain some type of hydrazine. Hydrazine is a chemical commonly used in pesticides and rocket fuel. can cause cancer— it can affect people differently. Cooking removes the hydrazine by evaporation, but “some people may still have a reaction even when most of the hydrazine is gone,” she says.
Heather Hallen-Adams, chair of the Toxicology Committee of the Mycological Society of North America, said hydrazine has been shown to be present in false morels, but not as “clearly” in true morels, the mushroom used in Dave’s Sushi. He said no.
Food poisoning from mushrooms in restaurant settings is rare, and the Montana outbreak is believed to be one of the first in the United States related to morels, but it occurs rarely overseas. In 2019, an outbreak of morel food poisoning at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Spain affected around 30 customers.One woman died after eating morels, but her death was judged to be due to natural causes. In 2019, raw morel mushrooms served in pasta salads in Vancouver, British Columbia, poisoned 77 consumers, but no one died.
Before the new guidelines were issued, the FDA Guidance on food codes The only submission to each state was that the provision of wild mushrooms would require approval from “regulatory authorities.”
The FDA’s food law prohibits the sale of wild-grown mushrooms in restaurants and other food establishments unless licensed, but cultivated wild mushrooms must be sold if the cultivation operation is supervised by the regulatory agency. If it’s below, you can sell it. Morels at Dave’s Sushi.State regulations vary depending on the situation 2021 survey It is established by the Georgia Department of Public Health and is included in the regulatory guidelines of the Food and Drug Officials Association. For example, Montana and six other states allow restaurants to sell wild mushrooms from licensed sellers, according to the study. Seventeen other states allow the sale of wild mushrooms that have been identified by state-certified experts.
This study found that the variety of resources the state uses to identify safe wild mushrooms, including mycological societies, academics, and the food service industry, may suggest a need for better communication. It has been found.
The study identified a ‘guideline document’ as the ‘most important step forward’ given the diversity of regulations and demand for wild mushrooms.
Harren Adams said raw morels are known to be poisonous to “mushroom lovers,” but that’s not common knowledge among chefs.
In the Dave’s Sushi incident, Hallen-Adams said it was clear that safety information was not getting to the people who needed it. “And this may be addressed by labeling,” she says.
Hallen-Adams said there hasn’t been much focus on ensuring consumers know how to properly cook mushrooms, “and that’s something we need to start doing.”
Hallen Adams, who trains people in Nebraska about mushroom identification, said the Mycological Society of North America has updated its website with more prominent information about the need to cook mushrooms, specifically mentioning morels. He said he plans to publish it.
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