Thursday, 27 September 2012
Friday, 14 September 2012
Make Additional Income from Mushroom Cultivation in India
Mushroom belonging to fungi species, is a nutritious vegetarian
delicacy and a good source of high quality protein (20-35 per cent dry weight).
Presently 3 varieties of mushroom are cultivated namely, white mushroom
(Agaricus bisporus), the paddy-straw mushroom (Volvariella vovvacea) and oyster
mushroom (Pleurotus sajor-caju). Agaricus species is mostly cultivated mushroom
globally, contributing 35-40 per cent of the world production. Mushroom is
consumed as delicacy and possesses several medicinal properties.
Mushroom contains many vitamins and minerals, like B- Complex and
iron, and is good source of quality proteins like lysine. Mushroom is
completely fat (cholesterol) free and also rich in anti–oxidants.
Global production
The global mushroom production in 2009 was 2.4 million tonnes,
which is growing at a rate of around 7 per cent. China with 1.7 million tonnes
production accounts for nearly 70 per cent of the world production.
Other major mushroom producing countries for are Poland, France,
Italy, Indonesia and Germany. India with 1.5 per cent contribution ranks eighth
in the global mushroom production.
The mushroom consumption is mainly concentrated in six countries
known as G-6 (USA, Germany, UK, France, Italy and Canada) consuming 85 per cent
of world consumption. The varieties of mushroom cultivated internationally are
button (31%), shiitake (24%), oyster (14%), black ear mushroom (9%), paddy
straw mushroom (8%) and milky/others.
Indian scenario
India's production of mushroom was 40,600 tonnes in the year
2009-10.
Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and
Jammu & Kashmir are the major producing States. Punjab, Haryana and
Himachal Pradesh account for nearly 90 per cent of country's production. Punjab
is the leading mushroom growing State contributing to 50 per cent of the total
production.
In India, mushroom has been a non-traditional cash crop grown
indoors, both as a seasonal crop and under the controlled environmental conditions.
Button mushroom is cultivated in temperate regions of India. Oyster, milky,
paddy straw mushroom is cultivated in the tropical and sub-tropical regions.
Two to three crops of button mushroom can be harvested per year under
controlled conditions, while for seasonal button mushroom ,one crop is
harvested per year.
Till early 1990's, Indian contribution to world trade was
minimal. It gathered momentum as the industry became organised with
establishment of large scale export oriented units. Total mushroom exports from
India in 2009-10 were around 11000 tonnes valued at Rs 66 crore.
Major export destinations for Indian mushroom are US, Israel and
Mexico. India exports mushroom in two forms-fresh and prepared/processed.
Button mushroom accounts for approximately 95 per cent of total mushroom
exports. Indian exports have been subjected to non-tariff barriers and thus the
export trend is fluctuating. Although the current share of India in world
exports is less than 1 per cent, India has a great export potential.
India's per capita consumption (20-25 g) is comparatively low as
compared to Europe and USA (2 to 3 kg).
The domestic demand is growing at a rate of 25 per cent. Half of
the mushroom cultivated in the world is consumed as fresh. The processed
products for mushroom are in dried, canned and frozen form. Half of the
processed mushroom is in canned form. Mushroom has short shelf-life due to high
moisture content (85-90 %) and is needed to be processed within 24 hours. The
post harvest damages are browning, veil-opening, weight-loss and microbial
spoilage.
Untapped potential
Mushroom is efficient means for conversion of agricultural wastes
into valuable protein and presents huge potential for generating additional
income and employment. In India, the full potential of mushroom cultivation is
yet to be unleashed. The cultivation practice has centered on white button
mushroom, accounting for 85 per cent of the total production.
The domestic marketing channels lack adequate price support faced
with erratic demand and supplies. Lack of trained manpower is among other
drawback for the growth of the mushroom industry.
National Research Centre for Mushroom (NRCM) is the nodal
institute for providing technical assistance for mushroom cultivation in India.
The establishment of NRCM has led to both horizontal and vertical growth of
mushroom industry. To make Indian mushroom industry globally competitive, NRCM
has been mandated with Research & Development and dissemination of the
technical expertise to various stakeholders.
Mushroom as a nutritious food, needs to be popularised. Mushroom
cultivation will help in eliminating protein malnutrition among people,
primarily dependent on cereals, and offer remunerative employment
opportunities. As India's share in global mushroom trade is minimal,
coordinated efforts among R&D establishments are needed to disseminate
technology to grassroots.
Mushroom for pharmaceutical purposes also present immense
opportunities in the global trade. India needs to adopt high yielding and
genetically enhanced varieties, which needs to be complemented by sound post
harvest operations. Innovative solutions are required to address the challenges
in processing and packaging of mushroom.
source : http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/agri-biz/article2021529.ece
Mushrooms transformed their life from nothing to better living.
Two clusters namely Balaram & Maracherra of Dhalai districts in Tripura were identified with less irrigation facility coupled with low cropping intensity. The local farmers bound to have paddy as the solo crop twice a year with intermittent vegetable outputs that did not do well in raising extra income generation. Therefore, mushroom cultivation was started off as an extra livelihood generation amongst the farmers by the ICAR in close collaboration with regional center of ICAR for NEH region at Tripura, under the NAIP project “livelihood improvement”.
Mushroom cultivation was first initiated through an in-situ training cum live demonstration in all the six Self Help Groups (SHGs) of Dhalai Districts along with the fifty-five beneficiaries in May 2008. The six SHGs were Abachanga, Khabaksha, Sharda, Pohor, Bodol, and Loknath. Till December 2010, 216 farmers have had started mushroom cultivation. Farmers produced 2062 kg of fresh oyster mushrooms at the expenditure cost of Rs. 46492; @Rs. 12 for a poly bag filling. The farmers sold fresh oyster mushrooms at Rs 80/kg to the local markets and earned Rs. 165045. The net profit resulted in Rs. 118509. Besides, increase in employment is registered to 1185 mandays. Furthermore, farmers used 882 & 889 mushroom spawns (each 150g) and produced 560.30 & 559.00 kg of fresh oyster mushroom (Pleurotus sajor-caju) in Balaram and Maracherra villages during April 2009 to March 2010, respectively.
Most of the restaurants menus have button mushroom dishes, Chinese Bhel, Malai Mushroom Curry, Mushroom Biryani, and Mushroom Gravy as the famously served mushroom items. ‘I am very happy to listen that my mushrooms are being served across various reputed hotels in and around the state’, says Bimal Debnath from Balaram village. “By selling oyster mushroom (Pleurotus sajor-caju) at Rs 80/kg at local market was like a distant dream that appear coming true slowly but surely with the technical and timely help provided the ICAR,” says Rebika Sangma, a woman farmer from Balaram village. “Since the demand of mushrooms are surging both nationally & internationally, production technologies should be applied accurately with sufficient technical inputs. There are many farmers who are coming forward to adopt this as business”, says Principal Investigator of the Project Dr G.C. Munda, ICAR, Barapani.
Mushrooms cultivation ensured enhancement of family income at cost of less investment. Waste materials easily deposed into food materials enriching with nutrition is the extra benefits at farmers’ hand. Sustainability depends upon regular construction of new sheds in order to increase mushrooms production amongst interested beneficiaries, however continuous mushroom spawns supply pose a challenge that can be sufficiently managed through improved techniques of spawn (seeds) production.
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