On 22 September, CNC proudly celebrated its 70^th anniversary with its business relations and employees. In addition to commemorating the company’s milestones, the festivities also provided an opportunity to showcase the value of long-term business relationships.

Their presence being the greatest gift of all, guests were asked not to bring other gifts. Those who wanted to show their appreciation nonetheless were suggested to make a donation to The European Mushroom Growers Group (GEPC), in support of European initiatives for mushroom promotion.

The response to the suggestion surpassed all expectations, with CNC’s business relations donating a total amount of €1,500. Marco Peeters, Commercial Manager of CNC, recently presented the donation to Tom van Wijk, Chair of the Mushroom Department Group of the Netherlands Agricultural and Horticultural Association (LTO).

CNC is extremely grateful to its relations for their generosity.

More information about the European promotional campaign for mushrooms is available on a dedicated website.

Source: Press release of CNC Grondstoffen B.V.

We are very pleased with this international player in the mushroom industry on our platform.

Here's some history on the company's inception
Cees Ribbens, a coatings manufacturer for the marine industry, was tasked with creating a gas-tight coating for refrigeration units around 50 years ago. His solution proved to be a success and the company expanded globally. After Mr. Ribbens' passing in the 1980s, his successor renamed the company 'RibbStyle,' meaning 'in the style of Ribbens.'

RibbStyle’s continued growth and dedicated team
Since their establishment, they have seen consistent growth and expansion. They currently have three branches and collaborate with distributors worldwide. Their goal is to continue expanding internationally, while remaining focused on local visibility and presence.

Their team
At their company, they have a team of twelve passionate employees. As a small business, they work very closely together and flexibility is a must. Their goal is to establish a welcoming and dependable environment for everyone they engage with.

Their commitment to quality
Quality is the cornerstone of their business. They utilize a multi-layer technique that includes a reinforcement layer. By combining these layers into a cohesive system, they provide their customers with a long-lasting solution. Furthermore, RibbStyle holds several certificates that highlight the standards they integrate into their daily operations.

RibbStyle's Expertise in Mushroom Cultivation
RibbStyle has a variety of branches, one of which specializes in mushroom cultivation. The process of growing mushrooms, such as mushrooms, is highly specialized, and creating the ideal growing climate is crucial. RibbStyle possesses the necessary knowledge and expertise to properly manage your compost tunnels and cultivation cells. They understand how important it is to have a vapor-tight coating to prevent disease and contamination. Additionally, they are well-equipped to handle repairs and maintenance to ensure your mushrooms are properly cared for.

More than just coatings
Having traveled around the world, the’ve seen both beautiful and prosperous places, as well as impoverished ones. In December 2010, a group of their enthusiastic colleagues established the ‘Color the World foundation’. The foundation's primary objective is to bring more color to the world by performing construction and painting work for the underprivileged.

To learn more about RibbStyle or get in touch with them, please check out their website.

Mushrooms, loved for their versatility and delicious taste, rightly deserve the title of 'superfood'. Whether you prefer chanterelles, oyster mushrooms, shiitake or portobello, mushrooms offer a wealth of health benefits.

These nutritional powerhouses are not only tasty but also extremely healthy. With minimal calories, they provide an abundance of protein, fiber, potassium, B vitamins and selenium. These low-fat treats are not only beneficial for weight management, but also for the heart. Mushrooms also strengthen your resistance thanks to their dietary fiber content.

As a natural energy boost, mushrooms are rich in B vitamins. In addition, they play a crucial role in the production of vitamin D, which is important for strong bones, teeth, muscles and a well-functioning immune system.

Scientific research has shown that mushrooms also have neuroprotective effects. As such, they can play an important role in promoting brain health and even help prevent conditions such as Alzheimer's.

Mushrooms are therefore not just a superfood, but a true 'super... super... superfood'. By regularly adding mushrooms to your meals, you give a powerful boost to your overall health.

If one wants to start a discussion with a grower (or with a consultant), start talking about watering.
How much, when and what watering method.

To make any sense though, you first have to define the period. There is watering on casing soil and watering over mushrooms and between flushes.
This blog is about watering on the casing soil during the incubation period. The water given in that period is to bring the casing soil up to the maximum moisture level and to keep the compost at the right moisture.
A good phase 3 compost at the moment of casing will be around 60% in moisture. For white strains that can be up to 3% higher, brown strains prefer 1 or 2% drier. It is not possible to bring the compost to a much higher moisture level by watering it after filling. It is possible to give water into the compost but that will be free water which has to disappear during the fructification period.
2 up to 4 litres of water can be given into the compost at filling or later but that should be the maximum. Even if it is necessary to cool the compost. This can better be done by giving water into the casing and let it evaporate with fresh air and circulation.

Casing soil itself can handle up to 7 litres per m² plus the water that was originally in the casing. To be sure, we talk about a casing containing white and black peat.
More than 7 litres will evaporate, go into the compost or down the drain.
Considering that the evaporation can be around 2 litres per m² per day, the loss with evaporation is about 10 litres. If you count the loss of dripping, the water staying in the compost and the evaporation you come to a figure of about 25 litres of water. In practical situations this means a total amount of water between 20 and 30 litres average. Depending on the farm and the time of the year. Growing drier often means a loss of production and growing a lot wetter means problems in growing, mainly in the outgrow of mushrooms.
Another thing to watch for is the watering method. Make sure that the pressure of the water onto the casing is not too high. Too many times I see a casing with a damaged surface which will give problems in the evaporation.

Every system has a different pressure and if you are not sure, ask the manufacturer. Regularly cleaning of the nozzles is something will help maintaining the right pressure and the right adjustment of the watering trees, looking at distance and height according to the casing level.
Keep watering but do not take it over the top!!

EuroMycel is excited to announce the launch of their brand new website! Browse through for detailed information on their history, philosophy, and Mycelium varieties. Discover their production process, product creation, and meet their team. Today you get a sneak peek into EuroMycel’s journey.

Story of EuroMycel
Established in 1868, Royal Champignon pioneered the Loire Valley's mushroom industry. After merging with Guilbaud Group, EuroMycel, once a Guilbaud Group subsidiary and now part of France Champignon, became a key historical spawn maker.

The group has grown since the 1950s through external expansion, allowing for innovation capacity in product development to distribution. EuroMycel has acquired impressive expertise and a unique strain collection, which has resulted in a distinctive "savoir-faire."

Philosophy
EuroMycel believes that genetics of Agaricus bisporus does not limit biotransformation. They use a unique physiological conditioning process on their commercial sub lines to maximize mushroom compost. Their approach is different from standard breeding strategies as their varieties are based on biochemical markers in the vegetative phase.

Mushroom Spawn
The company's unique strain maintenance relies on mycelium interaction with compost to provide reliable spawn products with consistent pinning performances. They have a deep knowledge of fungal physiology and use a specific step-by-step vegetative screening process combined with strict water control to optimize selectivity. They enhance the absorption capacity of the spawn through a sophisticated physical measurement process, critical for the bio-transformation in compost and crop growth. This process also enables strain differentiation.

Discover more about their expertises on https://www.euromycel.com 
Contact their team via https://www.euromycel.com/contact

• Sizzling 90% growth for plant-based burgers, while sales of sandwiches fall
• Annual consumer spend finally exceeds pre-COVID 19 levels, but visits to OOH hospitality venues remain lower at -10%
• 25% of Europe’s Big 5 population follow a flexitarian diet – a trend that is set to grow in 2024

BRACKNELL, UK – 8 November 2023 – According to research from Circana, the leading advisor on consumer complexity that formerly traded as IRI and The NPD Group, the trend towards eating alternative plant-based meat protein products in out- of-home (OOH) eateries, such as quick-service restaurants (QSR), cafes, pubs and bars has increased by 48% in servings compared to 2019 across Europe’s ‘Big 5’ countries. While in other food protein categories, the number of total product servings declined, including Beef (-5%), Pork (-16%), Chicken (-5%), Fish/Seafood (-13%) and Other Meat (-20%).

Typically made from ingredients such as soy, peas, lentils and mushrooms, plant-based products have gained popularity in recent years as fast-food chains and restaurants throughout Europe cater to growing consumer demands for sustainable, healthier and cruelty-free menu options. When asked about factors influencing their choice of where to eat out, 45% of consumers overall said they are more loyal to restaurants that care about sustainability, with Italy voicing the strongest concern (56%) followed by Spain (49%) and the UK least concerned (38%).

Burgers buck the trend

Compared with other protein categories, plant-based meat has shown the strongest growth across all formats since 2019. The overall number of servings across each protein category has dropped with one exception – burgers. While the number of servings in other formats, such as sandwiches and wraps, have declined, the burger has shown solid growth (Beef +4%, Chicken +16%, Fish +11%, Other Meat +14%).

Despite the overall decline in visits to OOH venues, plant-based burgers grew significantly by +90% during year ending August 2023 vs 2019, and +20% year-on-year ending Aug 2023, representing a quarter (25%) of the total contribution made to growth in burgers.

Please read the full article here.

Source photo: Kent Wild Life Trust

TechBrew Robotics secures $17.5M financing to revolutionize the mushroom industry with innovative robotic solutions, rebrands as 4AG Robotics for next stage of commercial journey

[Salmon Arm, British Columbia, Canada, November 15, 2023] – TechBrew Robotics, a startup addressing the labor-intensive challenges of the mushroom industry, is proud to announce a significant milestone in its journey. The company is rebranding as 4AG Robotics (pronounced “Forage”) and has secured $17.5 million in equity financing to accelerate the development and deployment of cutting-edge robotic solutions for mushroom harvesting. This transformative financing round is led by BDC Capital’s Industrial Innovation Venture Fund and InBC Investment Corp. (InBC), with participation from Emmertech, Jim Richardson Family Office, Lex Capital, and a series of angel investors from across Canada. This investment marks the first direct investment into a company from InBC, a public fund with $500 million to invest.

4AG Robotics stands at the forefront of addressing the most critical challenge in the mushroom industry – the intensive labour required to harvest mushrooms. Mushrooms thrive in dark, and humid environments, astonishingly doubling in size every 24 hours. Their delicate nature, even more fragile than tomatoes, poses a formidable challenge for automation when it comes to tasks such as picking, trimming, and packing. The mushroom sector, managed by innovative farmers, is in urgent need of automated solutions, given the complex logistical and labour challenges posed by a highly perishable product. 4AG Robotics is dedicated to providing this much-needed transformative solution, and has secured purchase orders with farms in Canada & Europe.

Sean O'Connor, CEO of 4AG Robotics, commented on this significant development: "We believe that we can build a globally successful robotics company, based right here in Salmon Arm, and are eager to start growing our team. We’re excited about the quality of this investment group and the people we can lean on in these critical years ahead. We have the deep experience in agtech from BDC Capital & Emmertech, along with the fresh approach and new energy coming in from InBC’s new fund.”

"We’re extremely confident in 4AG Robotics’ ability to lead the mushroom harvesting industry globally, ‘’ said Joseph Regan, Managing Partner, Industrial Innovation Venture Fund at BDC Capital. ‘’Their technology is helping grow mushrooms in a more efficient and sustainable manner, all while tackling the industry’s ongoing labour challenges. We’re excited for this market-driven solution to a large global problem."

Leah Nguyen, Chief Investment Officer of InBC expressed enthusiasm for their investment in 4AG, “We have seen 4AG’s ability to address the challenges in our mushroom industry and believe in their potential to lead positive transformation of the agriculture sector, a sector that drives considerable value to the B.C. economy. Their innovation is enabling mushroom farmers to optimize their harvest sustainably, providing significant improvement to farm economics and farm yield, and allowing them to supplement the traditional labour-intensive process. We are excited to see where 4AG takes this technology here in B.C. and globally.”

As 4AG Robotics embarks on this exciting new phase with a redefined identity, the company remains dedicated to pioneering automation in agriculture. “We believe that in the years to come, 4AG Robotics can help indoor agriculture thrive across a variety of crops, and reduce the amount of produce we ship around the world on a daily basis.” said O’Connor. “However, our core focus right now is helping mushroom farms around the world increase their profitability, and harness our robots to reduce the environmental impact of farming.”

4AG Robotics is particularly keen to speak with more mushroom farms that are looking to bring robots on farm, or ambitious people that are looking to join our company to help reinvent the world of mushroom farming with robotics. Please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

About BDC Capital
BDC Capital is the investment arm of BDC, Canada’s business development bank. With over $6 billion under management, BDC Capital serves as a strategic partner to the country’s most innovative firms. It offers businesses a full spectrum of capital, from seed investments to growth equity as well as ownership transition solutions, supporting Canadian entrepreneurs who have the ambition to stand out on the world stage. Visit bdc.ca/capital.

About InBC
InBC Investment Corp. is a strategic investment fund created by the Province of British Columbia with $500 million to invest in growing companies and venture funds to benefit British Columbia. It has a triple bottom line mandate to invest for financial profit as well as social and environmental impacts. Learn more at www.inbcinvestment.ca

About 4AG Robotics
4AG Robotics is an agritech company which develops and builds leading robotics solutions for agriculture producers to grow sustainably. Its harvesting robot is helping mushroom farmers to improve their yields and increase operational efficiencies, while addressing critical labour challenges and reducing food waste in the sector. Learn more at 4ag.ai

Around 145 mushroom growers gathered end of September to address challenges, tour Pilzland, and enjoy a surprise cultural evening. Despite the rising popularity of cultivated mushrooms in Germany, issues such as minimum wage increases, government regulations, and market challenges were highlighted. Positive developments, including success at the BUGA in Mannheim and advancements in marketing, were noted. Internal elections resulted in Dr. Torben Kruse remaining as deputy chairman and Matthias Surmann becoming the new treasurer. The international conference covered topics like a new promotional film, the MykoDeck project, and discussions on harvesting technology. The event concluded with a visit to the Pilzland facility, marking a successful 75th-anniversary celebration.

Please find more information on the website of BDC.