Biologist Niclas Bergius believes that the price has reached record levels this year.
Just recently, a completely unique price record was set for this mushroom in Japan, just over the equivalent of 335,000 kronor per kilo. A total of 208 grams of mushrooms were sold for the modest price of 70,000 kronor, he says.
Even though the goliath mushroom is common in Sweden and grows in forests in northern Sweden, it does not receive the same attention as in Japan.
According to Niclas Bergius, the edible goliath mushroom became known in Sweden in 1998.
In Japan, however, it has been known and sought after for over a thousand years under the name matsutake.
The goliath mushroom is a mushroom whose cap can be up to 30 centimetres wide. The cap is initially chestnut brown but eventually develops large, brown, pressed scales against a lighter background colour. The mushroom's stalk is very stiff, evenly thick and slightly curved. It is light in colour but has dark brown bands or spots. When the fruiting body is still young, the gills are covered by a light membrane, which later forms a ring on the stalk. The mushroom has a distinctive, strong and slightly sweet smell.
The species grows together with pine on poor sandy soil and is native to Sweden mainly in Norrland, but it is also occasionally found in southern Sweden.
Source: National Encyclopedia
