Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms

Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms

Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms are a product with a geographical indication for agricultural products.

　　Huangtian Town in Qingyuan County is a bustling hub of commerce, green agriculture, and eco-industry in the northern part of the county. It has been honored as the "Hometown of Shiitake Mushrooms in China" by the China Edible Fungi Association. Since 1986, Huangtian Town has been experimenting with shiitake mushroom cultivation. After over 20 years of continuous research and domestication by scientists, a successful model for cultivating shiitake mushrooms in greenhouses under natural conditions was established. The annual per capita income from shiitake mushrooms alone in the town reaches over 2,100 yuan.

　　According to analysis by the Quality Inspection Center of the Ministry of Agriculture, shiitake mushrooms can be cooked into a variety of delicious dishes and are considered an extremely valuable premium edible mushroom. Commonly known as "chestnut mushroom," shiitake is both a food and medicinal fungus. Its appearance is graceful and layered like chrysanthemums; its aroma is fragrant and refreshing; its texture is crispy and tender, offering endless enjoyment; and its nutrition provides excellent health benefits and high medicinal value. In recent years, it has become popular in markets such as Japan and Singapore as a premium health food. Due to its adoption in China's early authoritative publication, "Fungi of China," the name "shiitake" has become the more commonly used Chinese term.

　　In recent years, Huangtian Town has also researched "wild-simulated" cultivation techniques, improving the quality of shiitake mushroom products and establishing itself as a key production area for shiitake cultivation in China. In 2008, the town cultivated 18 million shiitake mushroom segments, accounting for over 90% of the national total cultivation volume. The annual production of fresh mushrooms reached 7,245 tons, with a single agricultural output value of 36 million yuan.

　　Location: Zhejiang

　　Applicant: Qingyuan County Edible Fungi Administration

　　Year of designation: 2014

　　Geographical Scope

　　Qingyuan County is located in the southwestern part of Zhejiang Province. It borders Shouning, Zhenghe, and Songxi counties in Fujian to the east, south, and west, and adjoins Longquan City and Jingning She Autonomous County in Zhejiang to the north. The county stretches 49 kilometers from north to south and 67 kilometers from east to west, covering a total area of 1,898 square kilometers with a population of 200,000. The geographical indication protection area for Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms includes three subdistricts, six towns, ten townships, nineteen township-level administrative regions, eight communities, and 345 village committees across Huangtian Town, Lingtou Township, Mengzhou Subdistrict, Zhukou Town, and Wudabao Township. The geographical coordinates are between 27°25′–27°51′ north latitude and 118°50′–119°30′ east longitude. The protected area mainly consists of arable land within Qingyuan County’s boundaries, covering 120 square kilometers. The production scale of Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms has remained stable at 200 hectares, with around 18 million bags cultivated annually and a fresh yield exceeding 8,000 tons per year.

　　Product Quality Characteristics

　　1. Morphological Features: The fruiting bodies of Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms grow in clusters with leaves, forming a hemispherical shape about 15 centimeters in diameter. The base is connected, and the branches are coral-like. The leaves are grayish-brown, fan-shaped or spoon-shaped. The surface of the leaves features radial stripes with thin edges, while the underside is white and covered with pores. The fruiting body is fleshy, crisp, and tender, with a unique aroma. 2. Quality Features: The fruiting bodies of Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms are soft, crisp, and delicious, with a taste resembling chicken threads and a crispness similar to magnolia petals. They have the fragrance of matsutake mushrooms and can be used to prepare a variety of dishes. The fruiting bodies are rich in nutrients, containing protein, iron, selenium, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin E, amino acids, and active components such as shiitake polysaccharides primarily composed of β-glucans. They help enhance immune function, prevent diabetes, and have anti-tumor effects. According to tests by the Agricultural Products and Genetically Modified Organisms Quality Supervision and Testing Center of the Ministry of Agriculture, Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms contain 20%–30% protein, 2%–5% crude fat, 7%–10% crude fiber, 5%–8% ash content, and 6%–9% crude polysaccharides. Therefore, shiitake mushrooms offer significant health benefits and high medicinal value, making them a premium health food. 3. Quality and Safety Standards: Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms are cultivated according to standardized procedures outlined in the "Standardized Production Technical Regulations for Shiitake Mushrooms" (DB331126/T18—2007). Quality and safety are ensured through testing and monitoring of physicochemical indicators such as protein and crude polysaccharide content, as well as hygiene factors. The product quality of Qingyuan Shiitake Mushrooms complies with the "Shiitake Mushrooms" (NY/T 446-2001) standard, and hygiene follows the "Hygienic Standard for Edible Fungi" (GB 7096-2003) strictly.

　　V. Specific Production Methods