Mushroom foraging laws in Arkansas
Compiled from official sources; not legal advice. Rules change. Confirm with the land manager or the agency before you pick.
Summary
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission land rules bar removing objects, including plants, without Commission permission, and the rule does not name mushrooms. State natural areas managed by the Natural Heritage Commission name fungi and prohibit collecting them. I found no state park rule text on mushrooms; ask park staff. Retail food rules allow wild mushrooms to be sold only if cultivated or packaged from a regulated plant.
Public land
Game and Fish Commission lands (including wildlife management areas): rule 19.16 makes it unlawful to remove any objects, including rocks, fruits, nuts, acorns, artifacts, plants, etc., without permission from the Commission. Mushrooms are not named, so ask the area manager. Natural areas managed with the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission: the Commission says collecting or removing plants, fungi, rocks and other natural material is prohibited. State parks: no published rule text addresses mushrooms; ask park staff. Federal land follows its own rules.
Permits
Game and Fish Commission lands: permission from the Commission. Natural areas: a permit from the Natural Heritage Commission, which issues them for scientific or educational research.
Selling
Arkansas Department of Health retail food rules (3-201.15) say wild mushrooms to be sold must be cultivated in a regulated operation, or be in packaged form from a regulated food processing plant. The rule does not set up an approval route for individually picked wild mushrooms.
Sources
- Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Code Book, Regulation 19.16 Removal of Objects Prohibited
- Arkansas Code of Rules 002.01.22-064 (19.16), effective 6/27/2022
- Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission - FAQs
- Arkansas Dept. of Health - Rules Pertaining to Retail Food Establishments (eff. Oct. 24, 2022)
Last verified: November 11, 2026