Mushrooms or filler? Demystifying the Superfood Mushroom Boom

New HBO documentary, Not So Pretty, encourages consumers to read the back of product labels and educate themselves about the ingredients in their everyday wellness/beauty products. The cold, hard truth about “bulking ingredients” is surfacing for a variety of well-known, mass-produced beauty products, alongside tried-and-tested natural products that utilize botanical adaptogens like cannabinoids and superfood mushrooms.

Adaptogens are non-toxic substances obtained as plant extracts that allow the human body to adapt to various stresses while restoring normal physiological function. By 2027, the market for adaptogen-driven products is estimated at $14 billion. Medicinal mushrooms such as reishi, maitake and shiitake, turkey tail, etc. are some popular adaptogens that are commonly found in dietary supplements today and achieved sales of $14.7 million in 2020.

With superfood mushroom products rising in popularity, it’s time brands made it clear whether their products contain the beneficial ingredients or fillers promised on the label. Mycelium on grains is a common filler that you may find on product labels. Mycelium on grain is quite different from natural mycelium, which is the root system of the fungus that is cultivated before producing a fruiting body that contains most of the adaptogen’s benefits.

Brendan Smith, CEO and founder of Raw Botanics, an adaptogenic wellness brand that offers several superfood mushroom products, further explains, comparing the mycelium to that of an apple tree:

“If the mycelium is like the apple tree, the apples would be considered fungal fruiting bodies. The tree and its roots are a complex delivery system responsible for creating and nurturing the apple, and there is no question that nutrients are found in both the tree and the fruit. Although mycelium is a critical part of the mushroom, the most beneficial nutrients are found in the fruiting body mushroom,” Smith said.

Photo by Luis Alvarez/Getty Images

While mycelium alone contains some beneficial compounds, mycelium on grain does not. When mycelated grain makes up the bulk of a dietary supplement, the grain acts as a bulking agent, essentially diluting the product’s beneficial compounds.

“Mycelium produced for use in dietary supplements is not the same as what is grown in the wild; Consumers should be aware of this. Most mycelium used for dietary supplements is grown on a substrate, often grain or oats. In these cases, you’re typically getting inferior products compared to fruit body extracts, which may have a higher concentration of grain filler than the actual mycelium,” Smith continued.

The labeling problem

FDA requirements for labeling mushroom products require manufacturers to clearly distinguish whether the product contains fruit body extract, but these rules are only loosely followed. In fact, one study shows that 74% of reishi supplements available in the US do not match their labels.

This problem is not limited to mushroom preparations, but also to food. A recent 2021 study of wild mushrooms showed that of the 16 products tested, only five contained the wild mushrooms accurately described on the labels. Wild mushrooms in the United States are primarily regulated by state and local agencies.

Currently, only 31 states have enacted regulations, and 94% do not require reporting to authorities before selling wild mushrooms. This creates a kind of gray area that is not vastly different from what the CBD industry is experiencing today, according to consumer product safety expert Tyler Williams, who recently trained major food and beverage companies worldwide on how to improve their food safety practices with the launch of the only accredited global one Cannabis Certification Program.

RELATED: The skyrocketing health benefits of CBD + adaptogens

“The FDA is responsible for regulating products because it falls within their purview, but the lack of federal regulation leaves local authorities free to try and create their own regulations if they wish. This regulatory gray area can result in inexperienced mushroom pickers selling unsafe or poisonous mushrooms to consumers and a potential source of food fraud,” said Tyler Williams, CTO of ASI Global Standards and Cannabis Safety & Quality.

So if you can’t trust what you read on a product’s label, how can you assess the legitimacy of products being sold on store shelves?

The role of product quality inspection and testing

One method Raw Botanics relies on is thorough product testing. Raw Botanics products are tested twice by two separate third-party labs – for quality, consistency and purity to prove no fillers, unnatural additives or unnecessary ingredients are used.

“Our products contain more than just mushrooms; Most of them also contain a combination of benefit-based cannabinoids and terpenes. Given the wealth of adaptogens found in our formulations, it has always been a priority for us to demonstrate purity to our consumers by making our lab results easily accessible. If you’re having trouble tracking down a product’s lab test results or COA, I would take that as a red flag,” Smith said.

Photo by eskymaks/Getty Images

While tests ensure that the product is free from things like pesticides, heavy metals or microbes, they don’t guarantee that the products are labeled correctly. This is where cGMP standards (current Good Manufacturing Practices) come into play.

“Food safety and/or dietary supplement audits such as those offered by ASI Food Safety address product identity, labeling, supplier controls, etc. While there may not be an audit specific to wild mushroom harvesting, the manufacturers who process the mushrooms can be audited to a cGMP standard,” Williams said.

Another avenue to pursue is patenting a product through the USPTO. Consumers concerned about a product’s legitimacy can always check online to see if a product has been patented. Ojai Energetics PBC, a patent creation and marketing company, sees patents as an effective barrier against bad entrants. OE PBC has worked with patent law firm Wilson Sonsini to build intellectual property for the cannabis and psychedelics industry, spanning consumer, pharmaceutical, industrial and energy verticals.

RELATED: A closer look at the ever-growing number of cannabis-mushroom products hitting the market

“Nutritional supplement patents enable powerful formulation innovation and have also presented a barrier for counterfeit companies to enter the market with ineffective and adulterated products,” said Will Kleidon, CEO and founder of Ojai Energetics.

Mushrooms are among the top 25 best-selling ingredients in the natural supplements channel. As the mushroom superfood industry continues to grow, so does the number of questionable products on store shelves. So how can you ensure that the mushroom products you buy actually do what the label says they do? As we’ve discussed, you can look for “fruiting body extract” on the label as opposed to “mycelium on grain,” or do due diligence on the brand offering the product to see if they’re cGMP certified is or has done so product patented.

Finally, avoid buying products from brands without lab test results or COAs (Certificate of Analysis) which are readily available on their website. By following all of these steps, you will be sure to find a quality Adaptogen product or brand worthy of your business and, more importantly, your trust.