Tomorrow, October 15, is "Mushroom Day" in Japan. It was established in 1995 by the Japan Special Forest Products Association to increase mushroom consumption, promote production, and educate consumers about their usefulness as a health food and how to use them. The United States, Canada, Australia, and other countries have also designated October 15 as "Mushroom Day" for similar purposes. Mushrooms are rich in protein, vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber, and are a popular food in developed as well as developing countries. In addition, mushrooms are high-value crops and potential source of livelihood for local communities.

The Yama-Sato-Umi agroecosystem connectivity project of JIRCAS aims to conserve forests in the Philippines and other tropical islands by increasing the value of forests through the combined cultivation of non-wood forest products such as mushrooms, fruit trees, and valuable tree species in mountain areas where forests have been cut down and soil erosion has occurred. In particular, the Philippines has more than 2,000 species of wild mushrooms, including an abundance of medicinal mushrooms, which can be expected to add even more value to the forests.

Contributor: KIMURA Ken-ichiro (Rural Development Division)