The eighth Truffle Festival, in Béziers, also highlighted the difficulties of the sector

Truffle producers and gourmet stands have taken place near the central halls of Béziers. Diane Petitmangin

Of course, the price of €120 for 100 g is expensive but we could find some great nuggets at a reasonable price. Diane Petitmangin

The stand of Antoine Yoris, the president of the Truffes en Occitanie association, organizer of the event. Diane Petitmangin

Pierre Gomez, truffle producer in Tressan, relates the difficulties of the profession due to the lack of water. Diane Petitmangin

Fabien Blaquière et son chien Trésor, un lagotto romagnolo, ont fait des démonstrations de cavage. Diane Petitmangin

The eighth edition of the Truffle Festival took place this Sunday, January 28, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., around the central halls of Béziers. Sold at the price of 120 € per 100 g, due to its rarity, the black diamond suffers from drought.

"Heating her up ? Oh no, definitely not! The truffle is eaten raw. Above 80 °C, it loses all its aromas. A slice of toast, a drizzle of olive oil. You cut it into thin strips, a little salt and pepper and that's it…"

Available and not stingy with advice, the tuber melanosporum producers were there this Sunday, January 28 for the 8th edition of the Truffle Festival, located around the central market halls of Béziers.

An increasingly difficult culture

Alongside them, gourmet stands (cannelés, cheeses, olive oils, local caviar, Cévennes paillasson, aligot from Aveyron, truffade…), as well as ;a nurseryman specializing in mycorrhizal plants, holm oaks or hairy oaks carrying black diamond mycelium.

In front of the stands of truffle growers established in the department or coming from Aveyron, Tarn and Manosque, numerous visitors admired the truffles, sold at a price of 120 € the 100 grams, but obviously a little less to buy them because, at midday, the choice was still wide.

The rarity of the product

A question of price ? But specialists justify this by the rarity of the product. "The continuing droughts and lack of rain are a big problem. Wild truffles have almost disappeared and even those that are cultivated are subject to this hazard, laments Pierre Gomez, producer in Tressan.

Passionate, he is inexhaustible on this specialized crop which requires a real science of watering. "The truffle does not necessarily need a lot of water, however it requires a certain level of humidity in the soil for the fungus, which grows in symbiosis with the root system of the tree, can develop.

Cavage with Trésor, lagotto romagnolo

If it's too dry, the umbilical cord, the mycelium, is cut. And even with an irrigation system, it becomes harder and harder to cultivate this mushroom.

Shortly after noon, Fabien Blaquière, also a truffle grower, in Plaissan "but my plants are still too young", made a final demonstration of digging (digging up) with Trésor, his lagotto romagnolo, aged 18 months and who, "from 6 months, had the truffle". Flawless.