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NEWS
Prof. Paul Thomas (our Managing Director) has appeared on several TV programmes, radio shows and in many written articles. Specific areas of expertise include the biology, cultivation, hunting and cooking methods of the wide range of truffle species. If you would like an interview or require information for an article then please use our contact form and we would be very happy to help.
Below, our most recent news articles are displayed and our back-catalogue is open for browsing.
March 5, 2022
We’ll be returning to Birmingham’s NEC for the Farm Business Innovation show 2022.
Following on from previous year’s success, Dr Paul Thomas will be delivering a seminar on both days of the show.
February 15, 2022
...in truffle literature, it is often claimed that truffle mycorrhiza can tolerate submersion for '14 days and no more' but with flood events increasing in frequency, we thought we'd put this to the test. As part of the experiment, saplings with truffle mycorrhiza were flooded from 7 to 65 days and full results have now been published.
January 13, 2022
The summer or burgundy, black truffle, one of the world’s most expensive ingredients, has been successfully cultivated in Ireland, making history after 10 years of waiting.
October 1, 2021
We’ll be returning to Birmingham’s NEC for the Farm Business Innovation show - 10th & 11th November 2021- Birmingham NEC
February 19, 2021
How can I grow white truffles or Tuber magnatum? Can I farm white truffles? Can I grow white truffles in the UK? These are some of the most common questions we’ve been asked over the years and the response has always been that the technology just isn't there yet. Many years ago, we developed a system that resulted in well colonised trees with T. magnatum, but we had never offered these for sale as there are still so many unknowns about its cultivation. Consequently, there was widespread excitement this week when it was reported by a French team that white truffles had been produced from inoculated trees and in just 4.5 years! We thought it would be useful to provide a brief synopsis of this report and the current state of the technology to help would-be cultivators.
February 16, 2021
Within truffe cultivation, some basic parameters are understood. For example, it is widely accepted that to cultivate black winter ‘Périgord’ truffles (Tuber melanosporum) we need a suitable climate, alkaline soils and host trees whose roots have formed mycorrhizal structures with T. melanosporum. Across the globe, these basic principles form the basis of truffle cultivation and an approach that is broadly successful. However, the very basic question of how a truffle forms and what triggers this development is still poorly understood. One of the most basic questions can be summarised in one word that has occupied humans for millennia: sex! In this blog post Prof. Paul Thomas discusses how DNA sequencing technology has led to the discovery that for the winter truffle there are two mating types (or ‘sexes’) and these must come together to form fruiting bodies (truffles).
December 5, 2020
(Closing date 6th Jan 2021). How to get the best of both worlds: harnessing microbiology and biotechnology to crop speciality fungi from forest plantations. Prof. Paul Thomas and colleague Prof. Alastair Jump of the University of Stirling are looking for a PhD student to undertake research that combines food production with timber crops. This interdisciplinary PhD project combines biotechnology with microbiology, agroforestry and environmental niche and economic impact modelling to develop the methods required for the successful implementation of this agroforestry system in the UK and evaluate its potential impact.
December 5, 2020
2020 has been a big news year and life has changed in ways that most of us never expected. At the start of the year record wildfires seemed like they could be the big news story of the year as huge blazes ravaged Australia. However, as we all know, it wasn’t just Australia and extreme climate events occurred across the globe. In this blog post Prof. Paul Thomas discusses the impact of climate change and the research he's working on in collaboration with colleagues from the Universities of Cambridge and Stirling around what these changes mean for truffle production.
August 8, 2019
The National Geographic have produced an excellent article focusing on a recent study into rainfall levels and how these effect truffle harvests; it’s particularly important as climate change is dramatically affecting the truffle industry. We’re often asked how important rainfall levels are for truffle cultivation and whether irrigation is required, both for the truffle trees and for the truffles themselves. We’ve had a good understanding of this for many years and know that both trees and truffles like a moderate amount of rainfall with a disbursement across the year. The climate in the UK, Ireland and across most of mid and eastern Europe is ideal for good tree and truffle growth and additional irrigation isn’t typically required on truffle plantations. However, new research published by Prof. Ulf Büntgen of Cambridge University is revealing that the timing of when rainfall occurs in a particular year is also a key factor in […]
February 15, 2022
...in truffle literature, it is often claimed that truffle mycorrhiza can tolerate submersion for '14 days and no more' but with flood events increasing in frequency, we thought we'd put this to the test. As part of the experiment, saplings with truffle mycorrhiza were flooded from 7 to 65 days and full results have now been published.