All about "forbidden business" and precious mushrooms that got two Futog brothers killed yesterday

Photo: Pixabay

A clash over truffles, one of the most expensive types of mushrooms in the world, led to a tragic loss of two lives yesterday.

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Brothers Predrag and Stanislav J. from Futog were killed after an argument, than ensued when they were discovered collecting truffles in a leased plot of land that belonged to brothers Dejan and Nebojsa E.

This double murder over mushrooms shocked Serbia, even if we take into account that a kilogram of these costs from several hundred to several thousand euros, which is the price the best ones reach.

Truffles grow underground, and pigs or dogs trained only for that purpose are used to find them. Their specific aroma evaporates very quickly and that is why it is important for the truffle to reach the table as soon as possible, which also contributes to their high price.

Although some other countries are known for being truffle-rich, they can also be found in Serbia. There are particular soils that favor the growth of truffles. These are mostly white and black truffles found around the rivers Jasenica, Karas, Lug and Bosut, then in the vicinity of Obedska Bara and Deliblato Sands, but also on Mt. Fruska Gora, mountains Kosmaj, Rudnik, Oplenac and Svrljig.

Younger generations only heard a few years ago that these precious mushrooms are found in Serbia, but few are aware that Serbia was the second country in the world to, in 1893, immediately after France, begin cultivating truffles.

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About three tons of truffles are found in Serbia every year, but thousands of euros worth of these mushrooms are still rotting away in our forests. It is the only commodity that is not offered to anyone, instead "the buyer" comes to collect it and the peak season is November when the most expensive truffles are looked for, whose price per kilogram reaches up to several hundred euros.

Other than growing in the wild, in forests, these mushrooms can also be cultivated. "Hazelnut trees above, truffles below" is the motto that everyone already knows. Truffles can also be grown next to oaks, but insiders claim that they need incomparably more time to achieve a good yield, some say a decade and a half.

Those who want to grow truffles, in any case must come to terms with the fact that it is not a way to make a quick profit. By using hazelnut seedlings enriched with truffle mycelium, one must wait three years for the first crop.

One hazelnut seedling costs from 200 dinars and up, and the distance between the rows and columns should be from 4.5 to 6 meters, so that there are 450 to 750 seedlings per hectare. Seedlings are never of the same variety, and that is the most important element of planting, because hazelnuts do not pollinate themselves so a successful plantation requires at least 4 to 6 varieties.

Photo: Pixabay

From the fourth to the tenth year, the average yield of truffles should be about 150 grams per seedling, plus about 3 kilograms of hazelnuts per tree. From the tenth year, the yield of truffles increases to 250 grams, while the amount of hazelnuts goes to 5 kilograms.

The good thing about this is that hazelnuts are a stable commodity whose price and demand does not oscillate much over a long period of time, so they can be counted on for the long term.

This year, Serbian top class white truffles were sold from 3,000 to 5,000 euros per kilogram, but these had much higher, astronomical prices in the west. There are more than 200 different types of truffles in the world, but the basic division is into black and white varieties.

White truffles are more expensive than black ones, while extremely large specimen do not have a fixed price but are sold in auctions where they can reach fabulous figures.

(Telegraf Biznis/G.A.)