Annual meeting of scientific researchers and the truffle industry
2-3 April 2014
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The Truffle Technical Fair (JTT 2014)
The JTT will be held in 2014 for the first time in Lorraine thanks to support from LabEx ARBRE. Its aim is to promote an exchange between truffle farmers and truffle sector professionals and scientists and technicians working in laboratories involved in truffle research by gathering from 20 to 30 specialized technicians and truffle engineers, visiting researchers and truffle-farming representatives from the Lorraine region and from the French Truffle Federation (FTT).
For more information, follow this link JTT2014
What is the Truffle Technical Fair?
The decline in truffle production as definitively been over for 25 years and we are even now seeing a trend of increased production. This increase is in part due to an experimental scheme implemented by the French Truffle Federation and scientific advances made possible thanks to investments from INRA. For 20 years, 28 technicians have been directly involved in following experimental sites that represent a total planted area of 125 hectares. JTT2014 was created to facilitate group discussions about results rendered from each regions experimental schemes.
Why host the Truffle Technical Fair in Lorraine?
The Lorraine region has a long tradition of truffle production and consumption. Several species of truffles can be found in Lorraine such as the Burgundy truffle (Tuber aestivum), the Mésentérique truffle or the Meuse truffle (Tuber mesentericum) and the black Périgord truffle (T. melanosporum). The black truffle culture, as well as that of the Burgundy truffle, represent for farmers and foresters in Lorraine a concrete and viable opportunity for diversification. The House of Truffles in Boncourt on the Meuse, which welcomes more than 2000 visitors each year, is an excellent example of the current trend in eco-tourism which truffles could help develop further. The Truffle Technical Fair in Lorraine aims to facilitate a local truffle exchange with technicians from surrounding regions but also presents an opportunity to showcase experimental schemes already in place in the region.
What’s on on the agenda?
The Truffle Technical Fair will be held over two days (follow this link for the full program). On April 2, INRA Champenoux will devote a full day to technical aspects and experimentation and presentations by guest scientists highlighting the most recent advances. Special participation will be from Catherine Collet (UMR LERFOB) and Arnaud Legout (UR BEF) who will speak throughout the day. April 3 will be devoted to on site visits organized jointly by the French Truffle Federation (FTT) and the Inter-regional truffle federation for central and eastern France (ITCE). The morning will begin with discussions followed by an on-site visit at the home of truffles, Boncourt on Meuse
Valuable Input for LabEx ARBRE
Truffles are ectomycorrhizal fungi endemic to French forests. The black truffle has recently become a model species for understanding ascomycetes ectomycorrhizal : the biology and ecology of mycorrhizal fungi and tree-microbe interactions. It is based on this model that we are developing approaches in genomics, integrative biology and functional ecology, each part of the multidisciplinary framework of LabEx ARBRE. The JTT also promises to strengthen collaboration between units within the LabEx calling on participation from researchers from units IAM, LERFOB, EEF and BEF.
The truffle farming sector is well organized and regularly seeks out opportunities for exchange between trade professionals and researchers. The JTT is therefore perfectly positioned to propose tools for professionals, their interest and technical applications.
Further, climate change is a major concern for the truffle industry and JTT presents an excellent opportunity to discuss the development of technical responses to address this issue, a direct response to one of the LabEx ARBRE foundation themes objectives: to develop and disseminate tools for improved forest management and anticipate their adaptation to climate change. It will also be an opportunity for LabEx ARBRE researchers to share their research and discuss with technicians how to further strategize valorizing their field results.
