| Going South: the Decline of a Truffle Tradition |
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| Written by Erika Fredrickson | |
| Saturday, 23 February 2008 | |
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Climate change may be contributing to the decline of truffles in Europe where the earthy and rich, sought-after tuber has been used in gourmet cuisine for centuries. Digging for truffles in Europe is tradition, and has included hunting for them with pigs or dogs in a ritual that is just as cultural as it is economic. More recently, black and white truffle prices have doubled, and that's because harvest in the past 5 years has gone down in Spain, France and Italy by 50-75%. Bad truffle weather here and there is one thing (droughts in the 1960s also affected truffles), but according to farmers in France, truffle production has been in slow decline for the past one hundred years. Though we may not be able to link the truffle shuffle to anthropogenic climate change, certainly a century-long trend indicates something larger than ordinary weather cycles. But truffles aren't diminishing everywhere. China and some areas in the Southern Hemisphere are finding that their climate is perfect for truffles. In fact, France imported 33 tons of truffles from China last year. The Chinese variety is cheaper (under $20 a pound) and some European trufficulteurs are saying they lack quality – which could be a genuine observation or it could be territorial snipping. One thing is certain: even if the truffle decline doesn't impact Europe's markets, you can bet it will have a painful impact on its pride. In the meantime, Europe is still ruling the truffle world. In Italy last year, one giant white Tuscan truffle (over 3 lbs) sold for $330,000 at an auction to Stanley Ho, an East Asian gambling king. Source: The Canadian Press
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