Wild mushroom caution urged by poison specialists

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Rochdale food enthusiasts are being urged, by the poison experts of the Health Protection Agency, to take care when picking wild or exotic mushrooms.

Each year, hundreds of British people are forced to take medical advice, or even endure hospital internment, after consuming wild mushrooms they have picked themselves. Some species of fungi in the UK, say the Health Agency, are so toxic that their consumption can prove lethal.

This year alone, the National Poisons Information Service has dealt with more than 120 cases of mushroom-based poisoning, 45 of which were in the higher scale of severity.

Dr John Thompson, Director of the NPIS unit in Cardiff, stated: "The mushroom season is just getting underway in earnest which is why we need people to be aware of the potential dangers involved in this activity.

“While many mushrooms growing in the wild are delicious and safe to eat, it is not always easy, even for people with experience, to differentiate between toxic and non-toxic species. The NPIS therefore advises that people should not eat mushrooms collected in the wild unless they are familiar with the various species that grow in the UK and are sure that the mushrooms they have collected are safe to eat."

Dr John Cooper, director of the HPA’s Centre for Radiation, Chemicals and Environmental Hazards, which commissions NPIS, said: "As people head out to gather wild food this autumn they should be aware that there can be dangers involved. Correctly identifying the mushrooms that are safe to pick and eat is the key to ensuring that foraging is good fun - and does not become a danger to your health."