Trial of mushroom cultivation in summer
An expert of mushroom farming, Sher Muhammad, who also owns a private farm in Peshawar, has made an experiment of growing summer seasoned milky mushrooms through farming in Khyber-Pakthunkhwa.
Muhammad has expertise in cultivating mushrooms through farming for the last several decades and has also provided free of cost training to farmers in the province.
“From the platform of Khyber, I have made an attempt of growing milky mushrooms in the prevailing summer season,” he informed while talking to APP.
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He said the experiment of growing milky mushroom was made in Peshawar and Swabi districts which would soon yield the result within few days.
“Mushroom farming is very simple and can serve as potential source of creating livelihood for hundreds of thousands of unemployed youth,” he said.
Muhammad added the farming could serve as cottage industry as people would be able to do farming in their homes on low scale.
In mushroom farming, he said the most popular types of mushrooms were oyster mushrooms, both white and golden, button mushroom and milky mushroom.
“The oyster mushroom is most suitable to Pakistan’s climatic conditions and can be grown round the year, except for four months of severe heat, namely May, June, July and August,” he said.
During the change of weather at the end of September, he said, the growth of mushrooms restarted and continued till late April.
“The milky mushroom is cultivated in summer season under controlled temperature which made people to avoid its cultivation,” he added.
Muhammad told APP that he was experimenting to grow milky mushrooms under controlled temperature.
“If I am successful in the experiment in this season, it will open ways for farmers to cultivate mushrooms throughout the year,” he said.
Majority of forms were closed in summer season because mushrooms could be grown in temperature ranging between 30 to 40 degree Celsius and in case of successful experiment, the summer season would have the product, said Muhammad.
He added there were more than 100 mushroom farms in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and consumption of this nutritious food among public was also registering increase for the last few years.
The expert further said mushroom cultivation was highly profitable business as one kg production costed around Rs80 and it could be sold in market at the rate of Rs380.
The shopkeepers sold the mushrooms to customers at Rs400 to 450 per kg, he added.
About the price and cost of milky mushroom, Muhammad said it would be quite high from other types because of its high cost in maintaining temperature at farms through the use of air conditioners.
He also noted that the government should give consideration to mushroom farming and arrange trainings for locals to tap a potential source of livelihood.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 12th, 2021.