Eg. product name, manufacturer, dealer, ...

MENU Close

• Entrepreneurs
• Business information
• Certification
• CAFIA laboratories
• CAFIA opinions
• More information
• Consumers
• How to know the food market
• Results of CAFIA inspections
• Consumer rights
• List of risky sites
• Hoaxes
• Other visitors
• Press Releases
• Internships at CAFIA
• Public contracts

The Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (CAFIA) warns consumers against buying mushrooms at sellers who do not have valid certificate on knowledge of mushrooms. According to the Act on Foodstuffs, all who want to sell wild mushrooms are required to have this certificate. These certificates are issued on the basis of tests which could be carried out at relevant Regional Hygienic Stations which also announce dates of the tests. According to random inspections, the majority of vendors who fail to present the certificate are persons selling mushrooms by chance along roads and near woods. However, this obligation does not refer to sellers of cultivated mushrooms,  e.g. champignons or oyster mushrooms.

According to the relevant decree, mushrooms must not be sold cut, permissible is only one lengthways cut made so that the stem remains together with the cap. Mushrooms must be cleaned so as to be dry, they must not be steamy, damp, rotten, mouldy or wormy. Prescribed storage and transportation temperature for mushrooms is from 0 to 10 degree of Celsius and they can be sold no more than 3 days after collection. Information above mentioned must be provided to the consumer as well as name of mushrooms which is beeing sold. Sellers shall have a trade licence.

Awareness is necessary when buying mushrooms at random sellers, especially in cases when
mushrooms are already packed in plastic boxes. Mushrooms at the bottom may not be fresh and could be mashed, steamy or wormy. It is appropriate to ask the seller to unpack them and check the content in detail. If the seller refuse to do so, it is better not to buy them.

In spite of this year’s extraordinary mushroom picking crops, it is not possible to vend all wild mushrooms. List of mushrooms that can be released into circulation is determined by the relevant decree which is published in czech version of CAFIA websites www.szpi.gov.cz in link „Legislation“ .