This is about a sought-after white mushroom, prized in Japan for infusing dishes with nuances flavors, but it hijacks a term that's been used since antiquity to refer to cotton fiber... Interesting none the less.
Sure, I think that's more a literal meaning, rather than the metaphorical sense the article was going for. As a metaphor, it's more common and way longer associated with king cotton.
thanks, reminded me of a quite funny old japanese show about how a family got one piece, and how prized it was, specially for the kid , who ends up eating it and not sharing a bit !
