The first ever Australian Mushroom Festival was held on World Mushroom Day weekend, Saturday 14 and Sunday 15th October 2023.

This event is a first for the AMGA and Australian Mushrooms, and was massive success with over 10,000 + mushroom-loving fans visiting the Queen Victoria Markets in Melbourne for the free family fun event.

Festival gowers stayed for hours to visit Mushroom Alley, watch the Mushroom Masterclasses on stage, and visit the interactive mushroom growing display to talk directly with an Aussie mushroom growers.

Click the video above to watch the highlight reel, or swipe through the image gallery below.

The highlight of the event was the Mushroom Masterclass stage that featured live cooking demo’s and educational talks by some of Australia’s most exciting foodie talent including Celebrity Chef Miguel Maestre, Simon Toohey from TV show ‘Freshly Picked’, MasterChef Alumni Dani Venn, Chef Jason Roberts, and Melbourne Business of the Year winner Hakim Halim from Ripe Cheese.

Each guest at the Australian Mushroom Festival also walked away with an Australian Mushroom tote bag and a gorgeous glossy mushroom magazine filled with summer entertaining recipes to try at home.

Special thanks go to Georgia Beattie, CEO of Bulla Park Mushrooms, who presented to the crowd on both days of the festival, and Costa Mushrooms who provided the interactive mushroom growing display.

The Australian Mushroom Festival included:

• Mushroom Masterclass Live cooking demonstrations, hosted by celebrity chefs including Miguel Maestre, Simon Toohey, Dani Venn, Jason Roberts, as well as QVM's own Hakim the Cheesemonger and Australian mushroom grower Georgia Beattie. 
• Mushroom Alley food vendors that served mushroom dishes such as mushroom truffle and cheese toasties, to mushroom pizza, and mushroom and chive donuts with sour cream.
• Mushroom Coffee and Mushroom Bar with its very special 'Al Porcini' Draught and 'Fungarita' cocktails to quench the thirst of festival goers.
• Interactive Mushroom Growing Display - with growing beds thanks to Costa Mushrooms. This was one of the highlights of the festival, for visitors to see first hand the unique growing priess of mushrooms, and talk directly with a mushroom grower.
• Prize givaways, free mushroom samples, Australian Mushrooms showbags and cookbooks,
• Live music, facepainter and even a mushroom juggler!

This event was partially funded by Hort Innovation Mushroom Fund marketing levy, and marketing funds from the AMGA. 

For more information about the festival, visit our dedicated website www.mushroomfestival.com.au

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This week is National Heart Week and an important reminder to keep healthy.

According to The Heart Foundation, one Australian suffers a heart attack or stroke every four minutes.

It's a scary statistic, but one you can help change by eating a wide variety of nutritious foods - including the mighty mushy.

There is virtually no fat in mushrooms. Like plant foods, they are also cholesterol-free.

They are low in kilojoules and sodium, while providing potassium.

In fact, research shows mushrooms have been linked to lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure, better weight management and more.

Put all that together and you have a very tasty food that might be key to enhancing your heart health.

National Heart Week runs from May 2 - 8 to raise awareness about the importance of heart health and deliver Heart Health Checks for more at-risk Aussies.

Find out more about the health benefits of mushrooms by clicking here.

Mushrooms for your heart

Here are our top five reasons why Mum should eat Mushrooms this Mother's Day

(and every other day too!)

1. Mushrooms may support Immunity

Antioxidants are natural compounds in food that help neutralise the damaging free radicals produced by the body that tend to speed up the ageing process. Mushrooms contain the strong antioxidant ergothioneine, in addition, there are many other antioxidants in mushrooms that help our immune system, like glucans and flavonoids.

Australian research shows that mushrooms have polysaccharides that seem to stop cancer cells from forming and increase immunoglobulin A levels.

2. Mushrooms are great for mums-to-be

3. Mushrooms help with brain health

There is a good chance you have never heard of ergothioneine. It is a very powerful antioxidant that protects our DNA and body cells. It is so important that it has its own blood transporter – it is like having your own chauffeur driven limo carrying you around the body. Low levels of ergothioneine can cause cell damage, so it has been suggested that it is acting very much like a vitamin. On the other hand, a diet rich in ergothioneine is associated with a lower risk neurological disorders and early death. Ergothioneine is found in very few fruits or vegetables, making mushrooms a very useful source for vegetarians.

4. Mushrooms are packed with Vitamin D

About one in four Australian adults are deficient in Vitamin D deficiency. Very few foods contain good sources of vitamin D, but mushrooms are unique for being one with the ability to meet daily vitamin D requirements when they are exposed to UV or sunlight. 

Vitamin D is also important to help prevent complications like pre-eclampsia and diabetes in expectant mothers, and is similarly essential for women to keep their bones strong.

5. Mushrooms can help with weight management

We know mushrooms are low in kilojoules, but another bonus that comes with adding mushrooms to your meals is that they are more filling. It is an amino acid, called glutamic acid, that is the main contributor to umami. Glutamic acid is a molecule that sends signals to the brain to regulate your appetite. Put simply, it helps you to avoid over-eating as it seems to satisfy your appetite quicker and encourage you to eat less during the day.

So, there you have it!

Mushrooms are not only a great tasting addition to the daily meal, but they are also a nutrient powerhouse for women.

Note: the information in this article is meant as general information only. For specific, personal advice on any medical condition, please see your doctor.

Immune function naturally decreases with age, but researchers have found a simple way for older Australians to help feed their immunity needs.

One of Australia’s leading nutritionist’s Jane Freeman (pictured) says adding the mighty mushroom has been proven to boost intakes of essential nutrients needed to help older immune systems fight off infection.

“Immune health is very topical right now, especially as COVID continues to circulate, and what better time to talk about it as Seniors Week activities begin in New South Wales,” Ms Freeman says.

“While mushrooms are widely known for their great taste and numerous health benefits, mushrooms can help correct inadequate or low vitamin D levels, as one serve of mushrooms can provide up to 100% of an older person’s vitamin D requirements.

"Mushrooms can also serve up potassium, selenium, magnesium and other important antioxidants needed to help with the health needs and risks of those aged in their 60’s and beyond.”

In addition, around 10% of a mushrooms total weight is made up of a powerful antioxidant called Beta-glucan. This is double the amount of b-glucan per serve compared to other well-known food sources that include oats and barley.

According to a new study published in the Journal of Autoimmunity, beta-glucans activate parts of the immune system, and in doing so it increases your body’s ability to fight infection and possibly stop or slow the growth of tumours.

“Eating a serve of mushrooms every-day or including mushrooms into two meals a week is an easy and enjoyable way for older Australians to help keep their immune health in tip-top condition and also help the body’s defence when common viruses or infections strike,” Ms Freeman adds.

"A serve of mushrooms provides antioxidants and vitamin D for a healthy immune system.”

Here are 4 fun facts about mushrooms & immunity:

Did you know that eating 100g of cooked white button mushrooms for seven days may help to support markers of immune function? This is an easy way for older Australians to improve immune system defence when it comes to common viruses or infections.

Eating three cup mushrooms most days that have been ‘tanned’ or exposed to the sun for 15 minutes (this increases vitamin D levels in mushrooms) is able to partially correct low or deficient vitamin D levels.

Mushrooms can help to feed the immune system function. It’s important to eat the stalk and not peel mushrooms as this is where most of the beta-glucan is found.

Mushrooms contain good sources of a number of the vital nutrients that can help to improve bone and muscle strength, cognitive health, and reduce risks around respiratory infections. Around 10% of a mushrooms total weight is made up of a powerful antioxidant called Beta-glucan. This is double the amount of b-glucan per serve compared to other well-known food sources that include oats and barley. 

Millions of Aussie kids have returned to school and now, more than ever, parents are looking for ways to support the child's immune health.  

One of Australia’s leading nutritionist’s Jane Freeman believes strengthening your child’s immune system should be added to the Term 1 ‘to do’ list.

The AMGA Dietitian says adding the mighty mushroom into lunchboxes is an easy way to support tip-top immune health.

“As a mother-of-three myself, I understand that mushrooms might not be the first ingredient that comes to mind when working out what to put in your child’s lunchbox, but mushrooms are a good source of vitamin D, antioxidants and other important nutrients proven to help support our immune systems,” says Ms Freeman.

“Mushrooms pack a powerful punch when it comes to health goodness and there are simple ways to sneak them in, even for the fussiest eaters.

“Interestingly, increasing intakes of wholefood antioxidants is something that can help our immune system to defend the body, and mushrooms contain a number of potent antioxidants to help do this.

“Mushrooms also contain a prebiotic type of fibre which provides an essential food source to the numerous types of good gut bacteria and cells in our body. In fact, 70 percent of the immune system is housed in the gut which is why including this superfood can help with overall gut and immune health.”

Ms Freeman says researchers are investigating whether a powerful antioxidant called ergothioneine and a compound called B-glucans – both found in mushrooms - might have a role to play in the overall treatment of respiratory illness, including COVID-19.

So how can you add more of the might mushroom to your child's diet?

“For a start, I recommend setting a target of around three small mushrooms per day as part of a plant-focused, whole-food diet. There are lots of great mushroom recipes on the Australian Mushroom Growers website, which children will enjoy.” says Ms Freeman.

“No matter how you decide to include more mushrooms in your child’s diet, you can be certain they will be better for it.”

A blend of mushrooms + mince is healthier, with less fat and more nutrients.

Mushrooms have almost no kilojoules compared to red meat, so substituting some mince for mushrooms significantly lowers the overall food kilojoules or calories that you are dishing up.

Comparatively, mushrooms have 88% less calories than lean red minced meat which is good for the waistline.

• 100g of lean red mince*           710 kJ (169 calories)
• 100g of minced mushrooms      86 kJ (20 calories)

Whilst we all enjoy having the kids home for the holidays, getting them back into a routine when school resumes is essential. Whether it’s to help keep them active in the playground or switched on in the classroom, you can rest assured knowing mushrooms are always an excellent choice.

Mushrooms are super sources of vitamin D, antioxidants and other biochemical nutrients known to help strengthen immune systems. This is especially important this year as kids are being vaccinated and working up the extra defences needed to help protect them from serious complications that can arise from COVID-19.

As a mother of three myself, I understand that mushrooms may not be the first ingredient that comes to mind when working out what to put in your kid’s lunch boxes or on the plates of fussier eaters, but after reading my ABCD&E’s of mushroom immune health goodness, you’ll see just how powerful the wonderful mushroom can be.

A - Antioxidants to defend the body

Increasing intakes of wholefood antioxidants is something that can help both small and bigger immune systems to defend the body. Mushrooms contain a number of potent antioxidants that include catechin, myricetin, quercetin, kaempferol and many more. They are also high in other nutrients that can act as antioxidants in the body, most notably potassium, selenium, copper, and magnesium.

B- Beta-glucans to influence your immunity

C- Chitin for a healthy gut and immune system

Chitin is also another polysaccharide type carbohydrate which is a key component of the fibrous wall of mushrooms. Also known as a prebiotic type of fibre, it provides an essential food source to the numerous types of good gut bacteria and the cells of the gut.

Fun fact! Did you know that 70% of the immune system is housed in the gut and that our gut microbiome (bacteria) helps direct many of its essential functions. This is also why including mushrooms in your diet can help with overall gut and immune health.

D- Vitamin D for protection

Vitamin D is a well-known essential nutrient that enables immune systems to function well. Research has also shown that healthy levels of vitamin D are able to help keep immune systems healthy and may protect against respiratory type illnesses such as asthma, viral and bacterial infections. While we are not saying that mushrooms can prevent COVID-19, there are some recent student which found that people hospitalised for COVID-19, and who also had good levels of vitamin D, did better and experienced less serious side effects. 

E- Ergothioneine to stay well

Mushrooms are the most abundant food source of another powerful antioxidant or nutraceutical (nutrient that may be able to exert a therapeutic effect) called ergothioneine. There is a lot of research interest in ergothioneine at the moment as it is being studied for a possible role in being able to help in the overall treatment of respiratory illness, including COVID-19. While it will be interesting to watch this space, it seems that being able to eat a food that contains ergothioneine could help us breathe a little better and stay well.

So there you have the A,B,C,D & E of mushrooms!  Implement more mushrooms into your diet by setting a target of including around three small mushrooms per day as part of a plant-focused, whole-food diet. For dinners, why not try lamb and mushroom ragu, Mexican-style mushroom mince tacos or chicken, mushroom and thyme enchiladas? Or power up that lunch box instead with egg, mushroom and pesto tarts, pizza-stuffed mushrooms, mini spinach, feta and mushroom gozleme or sausage and mushroom pides.

No matter how you decide to include more mushrooms in your kids’ diet, you can be certain they’ll be better off for it!

Note: the information in this article is meant as general information only. For specific, personal advice on any medical condition, please see your doctor.

Make your New Years resolutions a success: Ditch the detox diet and eat more mushrooms. 

If you’re like most people, setting a new year’s resolution that involves health and wellness is something that was on top of your 2022 to-do list.

If you’ve found yourself failing at accomplishing these goals in the past, it may be time to move away from a detox type or other quick fix type dietary approaches, and instead embrace the steps needed to fill the fridge with real food and start eating in an intuitive way.

Detox and restrictive type diets simply don’t work, they are not sustainable and overlook the fact that your body’s liver, kidneys, skin and lungs are already doing the job needed to detox and eliminate waste on a continuous basis. Trying to shed weight quickly, via a drastic cut in your usual calories or kilojoules, will generally back-fire. As your body thinks you are starving or in a famine type scenario, it will try to fight back. This is done via slowdown in your metabolic rate (how fast you usually burn the food kilojoules or calories you eat). It also means any initial weight loss, will be regained a lot quicker and then a lot harder to take off the next time around. The bottom line is that you will go a lot further if you focus on habits that allow you to implement nutritious foods into your diet, rather than restricting and cutting out superfoods such as mushrooms.

Here are five sustainable ways that mushrooms can help your health goals.

1. Mushrooms can help you to reduce your overall food energy intakes (kilojoules) in a sustainable way

Cutting or overly restricting your daily kilojoule intakes by too much is more likely to lead to nagging hunger and increased sugar cravings, making it harder to resist and stick to your goals. A better way to reduce your food energy intake is to eat and substitute with healthy and lower energy dense or lower calorie content foods, also those with a lower GI (Glycaemic Index) - this is where the mushroom truly excels. Mushrooms are low GI and have been proven to help with satiety – so they can help you feel fuller for longer.

Mushrooms are almost kilojoule or calorie free, a handful of mushrooms only has around 35 kilojoules. This also makes them a great food to snack on.

2. Blend in or add extra mushrooms to cut down on red meat intakes and make it go further

A key recommendation for health is to cut down red meat intakes, with leading organisations including the Australian Heart Foundation and Cancer Council advising we eat no more than around 350-400g across the week.

Mushrooms can be used as a food that can boost and extend your favourite meat dishes further. For example, if you are having tacos or bolognaise for dinner, simply replace half of your minced beef with minced mushroom. Not only will your meal be even more delicious, but you’ll be also eating more of a plant-focused diet and working towards your goals without even noticing.

3. Mushrooms help boost and feed a healthy gut microbiome

The frontier of nutrition health is now geared towards how your diet can promote the health of your gut microbiome. The gut microbiome has been described as our body's second brain, in that it has a real hand in affecting how we feel and our ability to maintain a healthy weight.

Research has found that if you feed your gut bacteria or microbiome with healthy and higher fibre foods, it is likely that the bacteria who thrive on the nutrients in these types of foods will directly feed back to the brain and by default you will start to prefer their healthier food preferences. If on the other hand you eat higher fat, sugary and more fast foods, then the not-so-good bacteria are more likely to take charge and you will crave more of the higher sugar, processed and fatty food options.

While this does sound like big brother is taking control of your body, it is one reason why some people feel as if they are addicted to sugar.

Mushrooms have been shown as able to help boost our healthier food eating types of bacteria. They contain a unique type of prebiotic fibre called chitin which is only found in mushrooms, crustaceans, and insects. Prebiotic fibres act like a fertiliser to the good bacteria colonies, helping them to grow and flourish.

Furthermore, mushrooms also contain high levels of potassium which can help stimulate the growth of new healthy bacteria in the gut, whilst also benefiting the pre-existing bacteria in the process.

4. Mushrooms are rich in key antioxidants needed to help our immune systems fight

It would be nice to be able to look forward to pursuing your 2022 health goals without having to mention COVID-19, but with it still raging in the community, it continues to be as important as ever to eat foods that are able to support our immune system and help arm our body to fight against COVID, as well as common colds and flu.

In addition to being the sunshine food and able to meet our daily recommended requirements for vitamin D, mushrooms have also been found to contain an incredibly unique and potent source of a sulphur-containing amino acid ergothioneine. Ergothioneine is being touted as having many possible benefits in human health that include helping with the immune system, cognitive function, inflammation and helping to protect the skin, the heart and the brain from the effects of ageing.

It is also in the research spotlight at the moment as casual observations noted that lower levels in the body could be associated with higher rates of COVID-19 hospital admissions and complications.

5. Mushrooms are a healthy heart food and may help to lower cholesterol

With so much focus on COVID, it can be easy to overlook that heart disease is still Australia’s number one cause of health problems and premature deaths. Reducing your dietary risk factors for heart disease means keeping your weight, blood pressure and cholesterol in check. Again, mushrooms are a food that is low in kilojoules, they are fat free (no saturated fat or cholesterol) and because of its umami type flavours they are an ideal substitute to adding salt into your soups, stews and minced dishes etc. Lower salt intakes have been shown to help reduce blood pressure levels.

Mushrooms are also particularly high in beta-glucans. We know the beta-glucans found in oats are proven to lower our cholesterol, and an Australian study is currently underway, conducted by the CSIRO, which could prove that eating the humble Australian mushroom could do the same.

Mushrooms are the perfect health partner to red meat. Meat is higher in saturated fat, meaning consuming too much of it can contribute to increases in the bad types of cholesterol in the body. Mushrooms are a great way to reduce the overall amount of meat that you normally serve up.

Try these great meat-free mushroom recipes to help boost the health of your gut. 

MUSHROOM ZOODLE BOWL

Note: the information in this article is meant as general information only. For specific, personal advice on any medical condition, please see your doctor.

With this year’s reunions set to be extra special, December is a wonderful time for catching up with our loved ones, swapping gifts, and indulging in feasts together. Of course, with all the celebrations, Christmas isn’t always a good time for our health (or the scales)!

We know that by simply adding mushrooms to our Christmas stuffing, to chip and dip platters for entertaining, and including mushrooms in summer BBQ recipes is a great way to serve lighter, healthier and tastier meals this festive season - but there are also very specific reasons why mushrooms are a great health gift to give your loved ones this Christmas.

White Mushroom Cups – The gift of vitamin D.

The white mushroom cup is on the top of our Christmas tree, as it is Australia’s most popular festive mushroom - with good reason. Despite its small size, exciting new Australian research¹ has uncovered that this little mushroom is full of B group vitamins (including B12), minerals, antioxidants, and gut health nutrients. The research also confirmed something very exciting - mushrooms are the only wholefood able to provide 100% of the daily recommended dose of vitamin D per serve.

Presenting as an active hormone called ergosterol, mushrooms can produce vitamin D in a similar process to our skin. When mushrooms are exposed to sunlight for just 15-minutes the ergosterol converts into a bioactive form of vitamin D, which we absorb when we eat the mushroom. Amazingly, once a mushroom has been ‘supercharged’ with vitamin D by being exposed to the sun, the new D levels remain in the mushroom for up-to a week if they are stored in the fridge.  

You might be thinking “It’s Summer and we will be out in the sunshine, so wouldn’t I get my vitamin D from the sun anyway?” Of course this is true! But with the Australian summer’s UV index at its peak, we are all encouraged to be ‘sun-smart’ and cover up. Using sunscreen or a summer rashie blocks the sun from reaching our skin, which also blocks the vitamin D process. This is why many of us could still be vitamin D deficient over Summer.

That’s where mushrooms can help. Eating just one serve (three mushroom cups) of ‘tanned’ (sunlight exposed) mushrooms as part of your festive meals or snacks, is a sun-smart way to meet your daily Vitamin D requirements. Snacking on 3-4 medium white mushrooms, in fact provides you the same dose of vitamin D that is found in a regular 1000IU Vitamin D supplement.

Festive White Mushroom recipe ideas – White mushrooms are the all-rounder mushroom. They can be eaten raw (a good afternoon filler snack or on as an addition to a tasting plate or platter), they add texture to salads and a richer taste in your Turkey stuffing. White mushroom cups are also ideal for blending with mince, to boost the nutritional value of meaty dishes such as burger patties, meatballs, spaghetti Bolognese and tacos.  

Roast Chicken with Mushroom Stuffing

Swiss Brown Mushrooms – The gift for your gut.

The baby of the Portobello mushroom-Swiss browns-are the same variety as a white button mushroom (Agaricus Bisporus), however they are richer in taste. They are also a little firmer than it’s white cousin, and contain about 10% of pre-biotic dietary fibres known as B-glucan and chitin. Both these pre-biotic fibres feed the healthiness of our gut microbiomes and immune system. B-glucan is also known to be able to significantly lower blood cholesterol levels. Research is currently being undertaken by CSIRO to measure the extent the B-glucan in mushrooms can lower blood cholesterol levels, and the possible role it will play, as a food able to be prescribed for hearth health.  

Festive Swiss Brown recipe ideas – Swiss brown mushrooms are interchangeable with white button mushrooms, but they are slightly firmer and have a deeper flavour, which makes them great in pasta, risotto or arancini balls. They hold firm on the home-made pitta bread pizzas and in your stir-fry dishes.

Swiss Brown Mushroom Arancini Snowballs

Portobello - An easy meat-free gift.

The Portobello mushroom is the same as a Swiss Brown mushroom, but it has just been allowed to grow larger before harvesting. As the mushroom matures, it forms a richer flavour and darker colour.

Like the button and the Swiss browns, the portobello mushroom is rich in essential vitamins and minerals, but also contains a lot of water which makes it a low energy dense food. It is essentially the perfect “diet” food, as it packed with nutrients, but only contributes around 25 calories or 100 kilojoules per serve-and is a healthier, lower energy, dense substitute.

Festive Portobello recipe ideas – Because of the size and texture, a large Portobello is an easy substitution for meat dishes, perfect for a meat free meal occasion and a simple way to cater for guests who are vegan or vegetarian. Portobellos are great grilled on the BBQ in place of a steak or burger patty or stuffed with ingredients and roasted. You can even use them in place of a burger bun to reduce the carbohydrate and calorie load – which is a novel idea for those wanting to lose weight over the festive season.

Christmassy Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

On behalf of the mushroom growers around Australia, we wish you the merriest Christmas!

Note: the information in this article is meant as general information only. For specific, personal advice on any medical condition, please see your doctor.