AUPS, France -- Philippe Daniel opens a slim briefcase so buyers can glimpse his wares, then snaps it shut with a wary glance over his shoulder.
Daniel is not dealing in contraband but in truffles _ tubers prized for their heady fragrance and rich, earthy flavor. One of the world's most sought-after gastronomical treasures, truffles fetch astronomical prices, and sellers like Daniel are always alert for spying competitors.
Daniel used to deal in big quantities. But for the past five years, drought has been parching the Var region of southeast France as well as truffle-producing regions in Italy and Spain _ and today he can fit his entire weekly harvest in a single plastic bag.
He's not the only one.
Organizers at the market in the Var village of Aups, where Daniel plies his wares, have had to suspend the weekly wholesale auction, where middlemen used to bid tens of thousands of dollars for mounds of truffles. The reason: these days there simply aren't enough of the fragrant fungi...
... severe drought in the early '60s more than halved the harvest, bringing it down to about 50 tons. But the trufficulteurs, as truffle farmers are known, contend this current dry spell is longer and more acute.
"Climate change has got the seasons out of whack, it's hotter than it used to be and it rains lots less," said Jean Montesano, 76, a trufficulteur for more than half a century. "I want my grandson to take over, but if things continue like this, who knows if there will be anything left."
Production in France has been in slow decline for 100 years _ from 1,000 tons a year to just 50 tons, according to the Agriculture Ministry _ under the march of urban sprawl into the fungus' forest habitat and the migration of farming folk to cities...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/22/AR2008022201174.html