On a cold day in rural Leicestershire, Dr Paul Thomas was checking on one of his UK plantations, sites that he establishes in partnership with landowners and farmers “The wind was cold as I walked to the first tree to take my annual root samples”. Dr Thomas was in for a huge surprise, as when he pulled the grass aside, in front of him he found a large and very rare prize. “I was in complete shock! I jumped backwards, dropped my tools and ran back to the farmhouse. It felt like I had seen a ghost”.

Moments later and out of breath, he returned with the farmers upon whose land the trees were planted. Dr Thomas then unearthed the first ever cultivated British truffle. “It was an incredible moment, we were all jumping around, it felt surreal’.

The English scientist is mad about truffles and his company, Mycorrhizal Systems Ltd, grows truffles worldwide. This truffle find is incredibly important as it represents the birth of the British truffle industry and is a boon for British science.

English truffles, all currently wild harvested, sell for around £400/kg and have declined rapidly in the wild which is why cultivation is so important. “We made history. I’m thrilled. We need more growing partners now to help up raise the prominence/reputation of the British truffle industry to the level it deserves. This is a very, very good day!”

The first cultivated truffle in the UK

Dr Paul Thoms and the first truffle

Covered by: BBC NEWS, BBC R2, BBC R4, The Telegraph, The Independant and various other news sources.