High times in UK magic mushroom business

[T_i_B]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/drugs/Story/0,2763,1095861,00.html

The Aztecs dubbed them "the flesh of the gods", Siberian shamans used them to enlighten their path to the spirit world, and they were the preserve of hippies and the pioneers of the psychedelic movement in the 1960s. But now magic mushrooms are at the centre of a new - and legal - retail boom.

On the Portobello Road, in Notting Hill, west London, a stall opened for business in August, openly advertising varieties of psychedelic fungi and growing kits for sale. Psyche Deli, the company behind it, now runs two similar market stalls elsewhere and supplies more than 30 shops across the country. The company estimates that its turnover and that of its competitors in London is running at 50kg (134lb) a week, the equivalent of 5,000 individual doses or five-hour "trips".

"We sell to all types - doctors, architects, lawyers, even the odd policeman," said Chris Territt, one of the directors of Psyche Deli, which operates out of a refrigerated storeroom in Dalston, north London. "In our opinion it's only a matter of time before the fad becomes mainstream."

Although psilocin and psilocybin, the psychoactive constituents of the mushrooms, are considered class A drugs under the 1971 Misuse of Drugs Act, the gathering and possession of fresh mushrooms has never been an offence in Britain. However, the courts have ruled that mushrooms that have been dried or "altered by the hand of man" do constitute a class A drug, as might mushrooms that have been frozen and packaged for sale. Nevertheless, when the company checked with the Home Office last March it received a letter from a licensing officer saying it was "not illegal to sell or give away a freshly picked mushroom" or mushroom growing kits.

[Paul Hood]

1. It's only a matter of time

before they crack down. Under any pretext, people are not allowed to have fun.

[truthisfreedom]

2. i love this!

i don't use drugs, but responsible adults should have the right to decide what they eat. mother nature is all around us. nibble on it if you wish. i get high on sushi and wasabi. it's a religious experience for me.

it's organized religion that's afraid of this stuff. they're scared people might become enlightened without them being able to make a buck off it.

children, on the other hand, should be guided by their parents on this, just like alcohol. very, very few parents would advocate under-age mushroom ingestion.

[LifeDuringWartime]

8. couldn't agree more

n't

[truthisfreedom]

3. one more point... basically, the structure of the law makes it illegal to

let the mushrooms die.

but mushrooms die on their own.

weird.

how dry is a mushroom before it's dry? what if you can prove that there's still a bit of moisture in it?

anyway, wet pscilocybin mushrooms get you just as high as dry ones.

weird law. they must have enacted it thinking that there might be accidental magic mushrooms growing on the queen's property.

[Paschall]

4. Same type of law applies in Holland

Packaging and sale of fresh mushrooms is allowed. Drying, powdering, and encapsulating are prohibited.

There must also be other prohibitions, because fresh mushrooms (sold in specialized outlets from standard grocery coolers) apparently cannot be sold in Dutch "coffee shops."

[xchrom]

5. damn it , i was there in october

and on portobello and i missed it.
another reason to go back -- i love mushrooms.

[T_i_B]

6. There is another one of these stalls in Camden

Perhaps unsuprising that it's there. I'm more interested in the exceedingly attractive girl selling the stuff there than in the actual product though!

The stall in Camden is as much about legal loopholes as it is mushrooms I must admit and it does require a wee bit of bullshit to sell the stuff but once you've got that legal loophole bullshit in place the police cannot touch you.

[monarch]

7. Alot of fun websites on mushrooms

http://www.canedintotnes.co.uk/index.htm
I really liked this site, especially the quiz with the final question which asked the question: "what country has a pig-ignorant fuckwit for a president?" (I may not be quoting exactly but I think it's close enough.)

[Nihil]

9. Exact quote ...

"Which country currently has a pig ignorant cross-eyed fuckwit for
its president?"

Hmmm ... I wonder ... :-)

I also like the disclaimer on their home page:

"DISCLAIMER: If the contents of this web site have caused offence to
anyone, we could not give a flying fuck!"

I like a bit of honesty in the media! :evilgrin:

Nihil

[Elidor]

10. Anyone interested in mushrooms

Should check out http://www.shroomery.org/