Essential Oil Fumigation Modulates Nutrient Content in Selected Mushrooms During Postharvest Storage

Mushrooms are highly perishable, with a shelf life of up to three days. Considering their richness in nutrients and unique taste and aroma, extending their shelf-life presents a valuable field of exploration. Essential oil fumigation, already studied in plants, could effectively preserve mushroom quality by slowing the loss of nutrients. This study focused on the fumigation of two wild mushroom species, <i>Boletus edulis</i> and <i>Imleria badia</i>, as well as one cultivated species, namely, <i>Agaricus bisporus</i>, treated with <i>Foeniculum vulgare</i> (fennel) and <i>Picea abies</i> (spruce) essential oils. The fumigated mushrooms were stored for 4 days under non-optimal conditions and analysed for their content of free sugars and sugar alcohols, total FFA, composition of all fatty acids, vitamins, and ergosterol. The results were analysed using a linear model with three-way variable interactions, ANOVA type III, and multivariate PCA. The key findings indicated that spruce and fennel essential oil fumigation assured a high content of vitamin C (40 and 32.78 mg/100 g d.w.) and ergosterol (0.265 and 0.257 g/100 g d.w.) in <i>B. edulis</i> and a high content of vitamin D₂ (1.94 and 1.55 µg/100 g d.w.) in <i>A. bisporus</i>. The results demonstrated that treating mushrooms with essential oils can effectively modulate the nutritional value loss.