Zimbabwean Women Forage for Wild Mushrooms During the Rainy Season

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In Zimbabwe, when the rainy season comes it brings with it tons of wild mushrooms. This is great news for families who live in rural areas since they feast on the mushrooms and also sell them to earn extra income.

Every year, people in Zimbabwe gather wild mushrooms since they contain lots of protein, antioxidants and fiber – which makes them a tasty snack and also a way to make money! But eating poisonous mushrooms can be dangerous as some people have died from it. This means that mothers in Zimbabwe teach their daughters how to tell the difference between good and bad mushrooms, so that everyone stays safe.

Every morning, Beauty Waisoni, 46, and her 13-year-old daughter Beverly wake up early and pack supplies such as buckets, baskets, plates and a knife before setting off on a 9 mile (15 kilometers) trek to the forest. There they join other pickers – mostly women with their own kids – as they look for plants in the forest among leaves and dew that has gathered during the night.

Police often tell people to be cautious when eating mushrooms from the outdoors. Recently, three girls in one family passed away after consuming poisonous mushrooms and several years ago, 10 other family members experienced a similar fate. To prevent such heartbreaking incidents from happening, Waisoni teaches her daughter how to recognize safe mushrooms to eat.

Waisoni said that she started collecting wild mushrooms since she was a little girl. She fills her baskets and buckets with small red and brown mushroom caps, covered in dirt within hours.

Apparently, women like Waisoni are the main ones who sell mushrooms in Zimbabwe according to Wonder Ngezimana, an expert from Marondera University of Agricultural Science and Technology.

Ngezimana told Big Big News that generally, it’s women who go picking things with their daughters. They pass this knowledge down from one generation to the next.

Mushroom experts can tell which ones are safe to eat and which ones are poisonous by squeezing them and checking the liquid that comes out. They also observe the color of the top and bottom of the mushroom, as well as paying attention to special places known for good mushroom picking, like anthills near some kinds of trees or rotting baobab trees.

A study conducted by Ngezimana and some other people at a university this year showed that around 1 in 4 women who search for wild mushrooms have their daughters with them. Only 1.4% of these women had their sons with them.

Researchers have found that mothers typically know more about wild edible mushrooms than fathers do. They interviewed 100 people and watched mushroom collection in Binga, a district located in western Zimbabwe. The area is mainly affected by droughts and low-quality land which makes it difficult to grow maize, the region’s staple food. Unfortunately, many local families are too poor to even buy basic food and supplies.

Mushrooms are really important for some families. The research found out that those families make just a bit over $100 per month by selling wild mushrooms and they also use the same mushrooms for their own food needs.

About 1 out of 4 people in Zimbabwe (which is a country with 15 million people) are unsure of where their next meal from because of bad weather. The International Monetary Fund also reported that prices for food are incredibly high – about 264% higher than usual!

The government is encouraging people to grow specific types of mushrooms so that they can safely consume them and also make money all year round. But people really prefer wild mushrooms because they taste yummier and smell better than the commercially grown one, according to Ngezimana. This way, communities get to earn some money while enjoying a delicious meal at the same time.

Waisoni is a trader from Harare who has used wild mushrooms to help her support her children’s education and also make money in the difficult economic times Zimbabwe has been going through for over 20 years.

In order to get ready for the day, Waisoni takes a pre-dawn trip to the forest and after that, she heads to a busy highway. There, she cleans the mushrooms with a knife and water while competing with other mushroom sellers trying to sell their products to passing drivers by car.

A driver honked at some traders on the sides of the road to move. However, the sellers pushed forward, falling over each other in hope to sell something.

Simbisai Rusenya stopped and saw some wild mushrooms for sale but he was scared that it might be poisonous so he asked the sellers if its safe enough for his family to eat. He said “They look delicious but will it hurt my family?”

Waisoni grabbed a button from her basket and started chewing it to make herself feel better. She said, “Look! Everything is going to be okay.”