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At least 500 poisonings related to mushroom picking and consumption have occurred in the past few months in France.
Cases have been recorded since July by Poison Control Centers. A significant increase was observed from the beginning of September, and a peak is expected in October.
The French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES) said autumn marks the start of the wild mushroom picking season.
Poisoning is mainly due to the confusion of an edible species with a toxic variety, poor preservation as well as consumption of mushrooms in poor condition that are insufficiently cooked or consumed in excessive quantities.
Situation in 2024
Analysis of 2024 data revealed that, between July and December, 1,363 people with symptoms contacted a Poison Control Center after eating mushrooms in France. In 2023, 1,482 cases were recorded. Monitoring will cover the entire year in 2025.
While most intoxications in 2024 were mild, 41 were severe, including three deaths in people aged 32, 53 and 75, and three cases of chronic kidney failure. Symptoms were mainly abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. October saw the most reports with 715 while December had the least with 55. In total, 53 percent of cases were female and 47 percent were male. Patients ranged in age from 20 months to 92 years old, with a median age of 47.
There were 55 children younger than 10 who were poisoned during a mushroom meal. It is recommended not to offer picked mushrooms to young children.
Confusion between chanterelles and the Jack-o’-Lantern mushroom were among the most common problems. As in previous years, the most serious cases often involved the death cap, which can be mistaken for a parasol mushroom.
When information on the preparation method was available, mushrooms were cooked for less than 20 minutes in more than 75 percent of meals and were eaten raw in 9 percent. ANSES advice is to never eat wild mushrooms raw and to cook them for at least 20 minutes.
Mushrooms had mainly been picked. However, in 44 meals they had been purchased from a retailer, or consumed in a restaurant in four cases. The majority were foraged in the woods or a forest, but some came from fields and gardens. In 32 cases, mushrooms were picked from near roads – a practice which is not advisable.
Some people attempted to identify picked mushrooms before eating them using various methods, such as books, smartphone apps, the internet, friends and experts.
ANSES said it was essential foraged mushrooms are checked by an expert to ensure they are edible. Using only the internet is not sufficient to correctly identify the species, and use of mushroom recognition apps is not recommended as they are prone to errors. It is strongly recommended to photograph any mushrooms before cooking for later identification if necessary.
German action
In Germany, federal states’ poison information centers answer several thousand inquiries about mushrooms each year.
Popular edible types, including the meadow/field mushroom and the russula, can be confused with the poisonous death cap. Death cap mushrooms grow primarily in forests from July to October but can also be found in parks.
The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) estimates that death caps are responsible for at least 80 percent of all fatal mushroom poisonings in Germany.
Information on poisoning cases will be compiled and analyzed at the national level thanks to the German Poisoning Registry, which will be established at the BfR from January 2026.
“In Germany, there are highly poisonous mushrooms that look like edible mushrooms. Even experienced collectors can be mistaken,” said Dr. Yuri Bruinen de Bruin, head of the National Poisons Register division at the BfR.
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