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My grandparents in Toronto need snow fungus to make Snow Fungus dessert soup. But they've found only ones from China. They prefer to buy locally, and are too frightened by China's countless food safety incidents to buy foods from China.

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    Sadly, while I know that Silver Ear grows readily here in Oregon, I can't find anyone who sells Oregon-grown fungus commercially. Seems to be limited to the forager market. – FuzzyChef Jan 20 '19 at 06:39

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To specifically answer the question of if it is grown outside of China, the answer is yes. However, If you want it local grown, probably not unless you know someone who does it individually, it is tropical and Toronto / Canada is not that.

The only incident cited in the article that might pose a remote possibility of contamination is about the bleached foods containing carcinogenic compounds. I'm not convinced this is a solid foundation to have a fear driven reaction. Buy organic and look for dried and chemical free mushrooms like the one posted from Amazon in the next paragraph. Although, I'm not sure this specific species of mushroom grows in any other color that it would need bleached to sell. Also, it is widely available commercially and not expensive to cultivate, meaning the incentive to alter a cheaper version to make a bigger profit seems very very unlikely.

However, if you insist on not buying Chinese, it is also cultivated commercially in Vietnam. Look for / ask for a Vietnamese brand or probably even Thai. Tremella fuciformis (Snow Fungus) is also cultivated in other East Asian countries, with some limited cultivation elsewhere.[14]:327 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tremella_fuciformis#cite_note-Chang-14.

A quick search on Amazon didn't show any brands not from China, so I think you might be stuck. But then you can check reviews on Amazon and see if anyone got sick or anything off a specific brand, might be "safest" / most comforting route. https://www.amazon.com/Fortune-Compressed-Mushroom-Fuciformis-Unbleached/dp/B000LTMDLY/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?keywords=tremella+mushroom+thailand&qid=1564231105&s=grocery&sr=1-1-fkmr0

Fear is the mind killer.

Good luck.

Mo1
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    There is a difference between irrational fear and prudent caution stemming from historical precedent. – Sobachatina Jul 27 '19 at 13:02
  • Tell me where the tipping point is. Show me where people have gotten sick off this specific mushroom. Prudent caution vs irrational fear. – Mo1 Jul 27 '19 at 13:08