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Mushroom production has been growing in Brazil due to the culinary versatility of this food and its high nutritional value. However, few studies associating the aspects of its quality with the profile and preference of its consumers can be found in literature. Thus, in this study, we aimed to evaluate the firmness and biochemical composition of Shimeji and Shitake, as well as, the consumers’ profile and preference for purchasing these mushrooms. The mushrooms were characterized by firmness, protein and lipid content, total phenolic compounds, total flavonoids and antioxidation activity. In addition we carried out a survey on opinion of 308 mushroom consumers. The two mushrooms contain high protein content and low lipid content, and also expressive concentrations of bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity, suitable for these demanding functional food consumers. Shitake is approximately 4 times firmer than Shimeji and the highest levels for all analyzed biochemical attributes did not differ between the two studied mushrooms, except for protein content. The opinion survey indicated that young and adult women consume more mushrooms than men. Most of them buy mushrooms in supermarkets, and they are mostly higher educated people. No significant higher consumer preference for one of the two mushrooms analyzed was verified; however, most participants reported that they prioritize mushrooms which have characteristic aroma and flavor, smooth and juicy texture, being a convenient ingredient for a quick-cooking meal.

Pollen collected by honey bees (bee pollen) is promoted as a health food supplement with a wide range of nutritional and health beneficial properties. While honey is an important source of proteins for the bee colony, pollen is the bees' main source for other important nutrients, such as minerals, fats, fibers, carbohydrates, and other substances. The composition of pollen is rather variable and depends on the botanical origin of the pollen. In this work we studied the mineral content of bee pollen of three botanical origins (Cistus ladanifer L., Rubus ulmifolius Schott, and Calluna vulgaris (L.) Hull) and two geographic sites in the central Portugal (Caniçal and Vale Grande). Inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) was used for the determination of cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, manganese, and zinc. Prior to ICP-AES measurement, the samples were mineralized by treatment with HNO3 and H2O2 at 100 °C until complete digestion. The analyzed elements presented levels corresponding to the usual reference range [1]. The concentrations of micronutrients (Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn) presented characteristic profiles which differed between the three plant species, but where similar in the two geographic areas. The main minerals observed for R. ulmifolius and C. vulgaris were Fe and Mn, and Zn for C. ladanifer. Heavy metals (Cd, Cr and Pb) were present at low concentrations (Table 1), indicating that there were no sources of contamination. In conclusion, the determination of micronutrients in pollen could be suitable for the identification of botanical species. The investigation of element profile, in combination with modern statistical data evaluation techniques, can be a promising approach to identify the botanical source of pollen.

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