U.S. shifts National Mushroom Month to June for summer grilling

Mushroom growers have moved National Mushroom Month to June, but the change is aimed more at supermarket baskets and backyard grills than at the woods. The Mushroom Council announced the switch on May 19, 2026, then gathered members, industry leaders and stakeholders in Washington, D.C., in early June to formally mark the transition. For wild mushroom hunters, the calendar shift is a branding move, not a change in what appears after rain and heat in the field.

Cristie Mather, vice president of marketing for the Mushroom Council, said summer offers a strong opportunity for mushroom category growth because of grilling occasions and consumer interest in fresh, flavorful, healthy ingredients. The council said the new timing is meant to align with peak grilling season and remind shoppers that mushrooms are a versatile, year-round staple. Giorgio Fresh leaned into that message with Grill Packs, a grilling-friendly product line built for grilling or roasting, giving retailers and shoppers an easy summer hook.

The move also breaks with the council’s own history. Its materials have long identified September as National Mushroom Month, and the council says it helped get September declared the official month, with the tradition tracing back to the Mushroom Festival in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania. A United States Department of Agriculture blog post from 2011 also described September as National Mushroom Month, showing how firmly the fall observance had been established before the 2026 change.

That old September identity still has a home in Kennett Square. The Kennett Mushroom Festival continues to be held in September and still celebrates the town as the Mushroom Capital of the World, even as the industry’s promotional calendar has shifted into early summer. The split is a useful one to watch: the festival remains tied to local heritage, while the council is chasing cookouts, lighter meals and warmer-weather buying habits.

The scale behind the push is hard to ignore. The Mushroom Council says mushrooms are commercially produced in virtually every state, with Pennsylvania accounting for about 60% of U.S. production. U.S. output reached 946 million pounds in 2015/16, which helps explain why a one-month calendar change can matter so much to marketers.

For foragers, the bottom line is simple. June now belongs to a louder industry push for mushrooms on the grill, but the forest still runs on its own clock.