Marketing and Shipping/Delivering Truffles
We have read through the Grading Document from the Education and Marketing Task Force and would like to say thank you to all who contributed to helping to set up […]
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We have read through the Grading Document from the Education and Marketing Task Force and would like to say thank you to all who contributed to helping to set up those product standards.
We would also like to ask if there are best practice recommendations for the timing of harvesting, DNA testing, and getting truffles to market. We got our first small batch of Tuber Melanasporum last February and had them DNA tested for confirmation of species. If we are so fortunate as to get another small crop this year, is it wise to hold the first batch for a few days until we get a new DNA confirmation? How often during harvesting is testing recommended?
We would also like to ask if anyone can offer practical advice for the best cleaning method to avoid damaging the truffle as well as the best packaging strategy for tuber melanasporum for transport and delivery. We would likely be doing the delivery ourselves to a few restaurants within a two hour radius of our area.
We would appreciate any insights and advice.
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Hi Todd, we do a first and second clean followed by trim and grading. First clean is a hose with a nail brush to remove as much dirt and mud as possible. We do this outside. Second is with a denture brush and running water. We also use dental picks to check any pock marks or crevice’s we can see into to remove dirt and check for soundness. This is done inside where we have a magnifying glass to really check spots. You want running water and not a bucket as you want to wash any contaminants away. We cut any truffle with crevice’s we can’t see into as you don’t want to send out a truffle with mud or worse a worm to a chef. We don’t recommend using an ultrasonic unit as these take more time and haven’t proved on scale to be beneficial. We then fan dry them before storing in a fridge 34f with paper towel. We ship same or next day max, overnight delivery. Normal packaging is with paper towel to absorb excess moisture in a bag inside a foil foam cold pack with an ice block. Important that the block not touch the truffle to avoid freezing. People do vac pack however if you create an anoxic environment and the package gets above 40f you run the potential of botulism. We want to get it to the chef within 48 hours if possible as we loose a % of VOC’s every day and as you have discovered, fresh out of the ground is completely different from imported. Linnet will be at the conference and you can bug her with details if you like. We’re also running a growers workshop in Oregon in December where we will cover this extensively on day two. Feel free to reach out to me.
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Hello Todd,
First congratulation on your first harvest.
I don’t know about best practices but I will give you my personal opinion with regards to testing.
You have tested the first truffles and confirmed the species.
I would use different protocoles depending on the usage of the truffles.
If its for human consumption I would maybe do a spot check on a few truffles if they were reasons to doubt on the cleanliness of your orchard or the appearance of the truffle would bring reason to doubt on the species. We are lucky that in the US we don’t have endemic truffles that look like T. melanosporum.
If its re-inoculation I would test every single truffles, at least the first few years to make sure that you would not spread a contamination.
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Thank you, Fabrice! That definitely helps us with planning for the testing portion.
Is there anyone out there already cleaning and shipping truffles that would be willing to share lessons learned or make recommendations or point to good resources for finding options?
We are looking for simple answers on things like:
- brushing or not brushing the skin
- cleaning solution vs. clear water
- including something in the packaging with the truffle to absorb moisture.
- where and in what to store the truffle until delivery (clean or dirty?)
- target time frame for delivery seems to be same or next day? How long can it keep and still be considered a fresh truffle? 7 days?
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Hi Todd,
You could try to reach out to Linett and Simon Cartwright (@Simon-Cartwright). Last year at the congress they had a talk on that very topic. They will be talking on the introductory track of the congress this October in Kentucky.
From my experience visiting highly producing operations in Spain and from the answers to my questions, I gather the following:
Unlike button mushrooms, truffles are tough and “water proof”. You can safely brush them and you should use water (lots of water) to loosen the dirt. Some people are using high water pressure jet to clean the truffles.
Some people are advocating the use of ultrasound cleaner (like for jewelry) to clean every small cracks.
Storing should be at around 4 degree C
Packaging, your enemy is mold. You want to keep enough moisture so that you don’t dedicate the truffle (problem with rice), but not too much so that the truffle sweat and mold forms. Remember that truffles are leaving organisms that need breathing. If you place them in an airtight container, you should open daily to give them a breather.
Freshness is paramount. Our competitive advantage against European truffles is that we can’t be beaten on freshness. I have been told that T. melanosporum have about 15 days shelf life and every day it is loosing 10% of its quality. Every day counts.
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@Simon-Cartwright, thank you for the detailed response and excellent information. It is will be most helpful for us. We aren’t sure yet if we can make this year’s Congress, but are very appreciative of the support!
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