Matsutake mushrooms have been designated as a threatened species on the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
According to the Japan Committee for the IUCN, the Red List is not legally binding and consumption and collection will not be immediately restricted -- although the list is an updated version that classifies endangered wildlife.
Matsutake, Tricholoma matsutake, is a highly prized luxury mushroom that is said to represent the taste of autumn. They have a symbiotic relationship with the Japanese red pine, Pinus densiflora, and grow on the tree's roots. These fungi are distributed in Europe, Russia and Asia. But their number has been decreasing due to diseases that kill pine trees and deforestation, so they were classified as "Vulnerable" for the first time by the IUCN.
According to the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, about 60 years ago, the annual crop of matsutake in Japan exceeded 5,000 tons, but in recent years it has fallen to just a few dozen tons.
More than 90% of matsutake mushrooms consumed in Japan is imported from China and other countries. It is also listed as a "Near Threatened" species on the Red List of the Environment Ministry of Japan.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
