Gentle on the Planet

Stakeholders across the food product supply chain are increasingly interested in understanding the environmental effects of food production. Mushrooms have a unique growing process unlike any other produce item and are considered “one of the most sustainably produced foods in the United States1.” Consider this:

• They are grown in the absence of sunlight in a climate-controlled environment.1
• One pound of production requires only 1.8 gallons of water; 1.0 kilowatt hours of energy; generates only .7 pounds of CO2 equivalent emissions.1
• Up to 1 million pounds produced on just 1 acre.1

A 2018 study2 published in the International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment looked at the cradle-to-gate life cycle environmental impacts of mushroom production in the United States from cultivation to harvest and preparation for bulk packaging. The goal was to create a “baseline” estimate of energy use, global warming potential (GWP), water use, and other common environmental impacts.

Please read the full article here.

MUSHROOMS could be the "missing link" in bridging Australia's food nutrition gaps.

Nutrition Research Australia (NRAUS) is looking to identify nutrition issues within the Australian food industry's food service sector, and use mushrooms to help out.

The three-year research project is managed by the Australian Mushroom Growers Association and funded by Hort Innovation.

NRAUS chief executive officer Dr Flavia Fayet-Moore said the mushrooms have special nutritional and culinary properties, which make them valuable commodities in the nation's food supply.

Please read the full article here.

Nearly 10 years ago, local mushroom farmer Murray Good approached engineering professor Mehrdad R. Kermani with a challenge. Could Kermani and his team develop an autonomous mushroom harvesting robot to address the labor shortage Good and mushroom farmers around the world were facing?

Kermani, a world leader in the field of safe human-robot interactions, knew this was a challenging problem that could take time. With patience, perseverance and the help of his graduate students, he developed the prototype for what is now the first commercialized robotic harvesting system of its kind.

"When we first started the project, we had no specific data or approaches to reference," Kermani said. "We basically started from scratch."

Kermani succeeded where several research institutes and private companies worldwide failed, designing a robot that could pick mushrooms at a speed and quality comparable to or beyond human harvesters. He also took an innovative approach, developing a system that seamlessly integrates into the existing infrastructure of mushroom farms across North America.

Please read the article here.

e-nema GmbH is a successful company and market leader in the production of nematodes and represents the biological alternative to chemical insect control. Therefore e-nema combines cutting-edge technology and biological crop protection, always with the aim of making the world a better place.
An international team works in the company's laboratories, on continually improving processes and products as well as developing new ideas and solutions for plant protection, aquaculture and in biocatalysis, the 'white' biotechnology. They are based in Schwentinental, Germany. In order to further strenghten their position in the worldwide mushroom market they decided to invest in marketing by creating a position for a dedicated marketing manager. Mads Wollesen was hired in January to take up this position.

Mads is quite new to the mushroom business, but an old hand, when it comes to marketing. With a masters degree and several years of working experience in an online marketing agency, his biggest motivation is to help e-nema to optimize all their communication and marketing activities to establish and further expand its position as a global player in the production of biological plant protection.

„I am very excited to be here at e-nema and extremely motivated to dedicate my workforce to push biological plant protection solutions all over the world. I have already gathered some impressions about the global mushroom industry and can't wait to spread my roots there. e-nema is very science-driven and has many stories to tell. My task now will be to bring them out into the world.“

Mads Wollesen
Marketing Manager
Tel +49 (0)4307 8295-293
E-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website: www.e-nema.de

Strain products of EuroMycel

EuroMycel are experts in industrial microbiology applied to selecting and propagating mushroom mycelium cultures.
The company has several different strains in their product portfolio:

E58 Premium for the fresh market
E58 HD for the industrial market
E21 for the industrial market

E58 Premium for the fresh market

The E58 Premium is one of the most popular white bud mushroom strains worldwide. This dominant, mid-range, medium size, off-white mushroom strain is particularly relevant for the fresh market, because of its extensive spread of first flush and a long shelf life. It combines high density sporocarp with a thick cuticle, together with a high yield. The average size is 50 mm with great potential to produce larger mushrooms.

E58 HD for the industrial market

This off-white, hybrid strain is the perfect counterpart to the E58 premium. It combines a mixed profile, due to its bulbous stipe, and a higher productivity of first choice mushrooms. It is suitable, for either, the fresh market or an industrial, mechanical harvest.

 E21 for the industrial market

This is a highly productive, smooth, white, hybrid strain, ideal for the canning industry, with a quick mushroom tissue maturation process to supply a high performing, technical yield. It provides a good balance between the yields of first and second flush. It is acknowledged for ease and speed of harvesting, due to a homogenous pinhead formation and a straight cylindrical stem. Crop management can provide a high yield of homogeneous mushrooms, ranging in size from 35 to 80 mm.

The Mush Comb head-end filling machine phase3 Premium, is used for simultaneously filling mushroom shelves with an even surface of compost and / or casing soil as easy and fast as possible.

The head-end filling machine phase3 works in combination with 1 pulling winch and 2 feeding conveyors.

Supply of the compost and/or casing soil can be done by a hopper, wagon, container or trailer.

The Phase3 Premium model is perfect suitable for growing rooms big and small.

More Information to be found here.

Our 25 Watt, HACCP approved, LED lights are made of impact-resistant polycarbonate, come in a water- and gas-tight design (IP69K), and are highly resistant to chemicals and cleaning agents. The tubes are resistant to high temperatures during steaming and can withstand temperatures from -40 to +80 degrees Celsius when turned off. Available in 2 different colour ranges (4000 and 6000 Kelvin). And different lengths. The Standard length is 180cm Ceiling or wall mounting is ensured by integrated fixing slots in the endcaps. They can also be rotated or suspended using the clamps available as an accessory. The connecting cable is integrated as standard as a 2 x 1.5 mm2 PVC cable 6 metres in length. For mounting on the ceiling, it is recommended to use clamps. These can be ordered as an option. With a connection value from AC 90 - 285V, 50/60Hz and various certifications such as EC, ETLC, Din 10500, EAC - TR ZU 004/2011 and TR ZK 020/2011, these lamps really meet the needs and demands of the modern mushroom grower worldwide.

More information can be povided by the Mertens Mushroom Team.

Picture: The blue milk cap mushroom is a rich source of protein. laerke_lyhne , CC BY-SA

The conversion of forests to agricultural land is happening at a mind-boggling speed. Between 2015 and 2020, the rate of deforestation was estimated at around 10 million hectares every year.

Compared to 2012, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) is predicting a massive increase in agricultural demand of 50% by 2050. In South America, around 71% of rainforest has been replaced by pasture and a further 14% has been lost to the production of animal feed. One of the key successes of COP26 was a pledge from world leaders to end deforestation by 2030.

From a climate and carbon point of view, we know that cutting down trees at this scale is devastating. But the impacts run deeper: 75% of the world’s accessible fresh water arises from forested watersheds. And with 80% of the world’s population facing a threat to their water security, trees play a very significant role in stemming desertification and preventing soil erosion. They also protect against flooding in coastal areas as well as being home to a huge number of species, many of which are important crop pollinators.

So what can we do? We know that different foods have different footprints. Reducing the quantity of animal-based products will have a huge impact. In fact, eating less meat is one of the most potent changes that people in the west can make to help save the planet.

But what if we could go further? What if, instead of having farming and forestry in direct conflict, we could develop a system that allows food production and forest on the same parcel of land?

Miraculous mushrooms

This is exactly what our latest research focuses on, looking at fungi that grow in partnership with trees, in a mutually beneficial arrangement. This is a common association and some species can produce large mushroom fruiting bodies, such as the highly prized truffle. Aside from this delicacy, cultivation of these species is a new and emerging field. But progress is especially being made in one group known as milk caps, that include a beautiful and unusually bright blue species known as Lactarius indigo, or the blue milk cap.

High in dietary fibre and essential fatty acids, this edible mushroom’s blue pigmentation means they are easy to identify safely. With extracts demonstrating antibacterial properties and an ability to kill cancer cells, the blue milk cap could also be a source of pharmacological potential. Paul Thomas/University of Stirling, Author provided

In our paper, we describe how to cultivate this species, from isolation in the lab to creating young tree saplings with roots inoculated with this symbiotic fungus. These trees can then be planted at scale in suitable climate zones ranging from Costa Rica to the US. As the tree and fungus’s partnership matures, they start to produce these incredible mushrooms packed with protein.

The agriculture on cleared forested land is dominated by pastoral beef production where around 4.76-6.99kg of protein per hectare per year is produced. But, if this system was replaced with planting trees hosting the milk cap fungus, the same parcel of land could produce 7.31kg of protein every year. The mushrooms can be consumed fresh, processed or the protein content can be extracted to produce other food items.

Please read the full article here.
Author of article: Paul W Thomas, Honorary Professor Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Stirling
Source: The Conversation / NGO