The notion that Asian mushrooms in the United States are consumed only by people with incomes above $ 100,000, is a myth, say the traders. "That would mean I would never eat them," Valon laughs. "But I don’t really recognize the image anyway. In Europe, the main customers are primarily the Asian population and people who love culinary cooking. On top of that, each country has its own mushroom culture. In Belgium and Germany consumption is higher than in the Netherlands. Here you see virtually no Eryngii in the supermarket."
As a positive example regarding the sale of exotic mushrooms, Valon points at the continents of Asia and America, where a real show is made of mushrooms display. "Even at Edeka in Germany, you’ll see that much more attention is paid to the product, and that ample shelf space has been made available. Here, in the speciality stores, we might get two small boxes in a dusty corner. In Eastern Europe, however, we see that more and more companies are opening up to exotic mushroom varieties. There are wonderful examples of wholesalers and supermarkets who want to excel in those countries with a wide range of mushrooms and also want to invest in recipes and cooking demonstrations. I see no reason why we can’t have the same thing over here."
