There are many reasons to love mushrooms. These resilient, shape-shifting life forms have long occupied a strange in-between space—of being neither plant nor animal, invisible until they erupt, uninvited, from hidden corners, forest floors and compost heaps. Some are hallucinogenic, while others are deadly. They thrive where decay festers, and they bloom without a warning. However, no matter how loved or detested, they are definitely having their moment.
In one part of the world, mushrooms are being studied for their potential to become customised antibiotics; in another, they’re being pressed into bricks to build homes. Some strains filter drinking water, and others float in orbit as part of experiments to develop self-sustaining ecosystems for deep space.
These are organisms “eating rock, making soil, digesting pollutants, nourishing and killing plants, surviving in space, inducing visions, producing food, making medicines, manipulating animal behaviour, and influencing the composition of the earth’s atmosphere,” writes one mycologist, rhapsodising accurately the many facets of fungi.
But mushrooms remain misunderstood. Even in India, where the forests of the Western Ghats and the North East hills host a mycological diversity, a large part of the population remains uneasy about mushrooms. They are seen as a little too alive, a little too strange. Even as these anxieties linger, the country has found its knack in growing these fungi for food and pharmaceuticals.
In recent years, mushrooms have quietly found their place in India’s agrarian community, thanks to their minimal demands (Credit: Flickr)Mushroom cultivation in India has a curious lineage, one that begins in the cool slopes of Solan, Himachal Pradesh (now known as the ‘Mushroom City’ of India) sometime around the 1960s, under the patronage of the Food and Agriculture Organisation. Before that, the production of fungi remained shackled by cultural fear. It wasn’t until the economic liberalisation of the 1990s when markets opened and tastes widened that the mushroom cultivation gained momentum.
Historically, since the colonial era, it was the native tribes who understood these organisms best. Under British colonial rule, mushrooms were dismissed as the British saw them as “pariahs of the plant world.” When French cuisine began to cast fungus in a flattering light, the British palate began to shift. By the 19th century, mushrooms had become an emblem of good taste in a meal.
In recent years, these near-miraculous organisms have quietly found their place in India’s agrarian community, thanks to their minimal demands—no sprawling fields or heavy investments are required. Across the country, success stories of mushroom farming, flourishing right from the four walls of homes, have emerged.
Across India, success stories of mushroom farming, flourishing right from the four walls of homes, have emerged. (Credit: Flickr)At the same time, mushrooms are catering to the growing demand for organic and unprocessed food. Known for their rich nutrient profile, they are seeing a gradual increase in per capita consumption in India, which currently averages around 80 grams. However, this remains significantly lower compared to countries like China, where consumption reaches 1.6 kilograms, and the US and Europe, where it ranges between 1.5 to 3 kilograms
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Mushrooming opportunities
“India has all the required elements for becoming a superpower in mushroom production,” says Rouf Hamza Boda, a self-taught mushroom researcher who has spent two decades identifying more than 100 species across the highlands of Jammu and Kashmir. “India has huge wild mushroom diversity, lots of composting material, cheap labour, and diverse climatic conditions,” he added.
Gucchis, the honeycomb-headed mushrooms found in the forests of Jammu and Kashmir, are among the world’s most expensive fungi, fetching up to a whopping ₹40,000 per kilogram. Foraged by locals in remote areas, these mushrooms are often consumed raw or preserved using traditional techniques before making their way to urban markets. However, this prized variety is now under threat from the region’s rising temperatures, which are impacting its natural growth cycle.
Gucchis found in the forests of Jammu and Kashmir, are among the world’s most expensive fungi. (Credit: Najma Zahoor)Meanwhile, the North-East of India has its own catalogue of fungi. To address the region's limited knowledge about edible versus poisonous varieties which is a gap that has led to fatal consequences, mushroom experts Stephen Axford and Catherine Marciniak were invited to document and identify safe mushrooms. Their journey took them through Assam, Meghalaya, and Arunachal Pradesh, helping to map out the region’s rich yet underexplored fungal diversity. In water-scarce areas, mushroom cultivation has been promoted in the region through Self Help Groups (SHGs), offering an effective way to boost local livelihoods.
In Chhattisgarh, a rare mushroom known as Sarai Boda grows naturally in the forests of Dhamtari. This variety commands a premium, priced as low as ₹300 per kilogram in rural areas and soaring to ₹2,000 per kilogram in metro markets.
Since the crop is fragile, highly perishable, and sensitive, a minute change in temperature or failing to reach the customer counter in time can prove to be stressful.
Across India, fungiculture has become a tool for rural development. From the villages of Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal to individuals making mid-career transitions, mushroom farming is gaining traction. It's not just SHGs fueling this change, entrepreneurs and startups are also getting on board. Mushroom-growing kits have even made an appearance on Shark Tank India, and established companies like Dr. Kurade’s have been investing in the sector since as early as 1994.
It helps that mushrooms have a short growing cycle. A farmer can go from substrate to sale in just a few weeks. But experts have cautioned against over-enthusiasm time and again. Since the crop is fragile, highly perishable, and sensitive, a minute change in temperature or failing to reach the customer counter in time can prove to be stressful.
Indeed, mushrooms are not forgiving. They demand care, control, and near-constant surveillance. Fans pull air across moist pads in greenhouses to maintain temperature and humidity. Carbon dioxide levels are carefully monitored. One must be part scientist, part gardener, and part soothsayer.
Recognising the potential in the venture, the Indian government subsidised mushroom cultivation, providing up to ₹10 lakhs of loans and a 50% discount on compost. The states have also introduced aid for local farmers. For instance, in Bihar under the “Mushroom Kit Vitaran”, one can avail at a 90% subsidy alongside training support. The state has emerged as a leader in mushroom production since 2021 with a production of almost 42000 tonnes in between 2023-24.
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Fungiculture 101
Parimal Ramesh Udgave, a microbiologist from Maharashtra, knows this all too well. In 2019, he founded Biobritte Agro Solutions with the goal of merging biotechnology and business. Today, his enterprise grows, dries, and processes mushrooms into powders and health supplements.
Udgave represents a new breed of Indian entrepreneurs who look at fungi not just as food, but as the foundation for various alternative industries. Biobritte’s shelves are filled with bags of shiitake, reishi, oyster, and button mushrooms. His lab tinkers with substrate mixes and spawn quality. His team teaches others how to grow, troubleshoot, and profit from this ancient life form.
“People see mushrooms as a fast, money-making business. But it must also be combined with technical skills,” he clarifies.
For beginners, a piece of advice from a farmer from Ernakulam is that oyster mushrooms are the best to begin with, as they give quick results and a reasonable quantity. These mushrooms are ideal for newcomers as they offer an accessible entry point into mushroom farming with relatively little effort. Getting started in mushroom farming isn’t difficult, but requires consistency and precision. Ideally, the farm should be close to the home; cultivation is hands-on, and timing is everything.
India’s climate allows for a variety of mushrooms to be grown, depending on the region:
- Button mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus) prefer cooler temperatures and flourish in places like Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and parts of Tamil Nadu.
- Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus), locally known as dhingri, thrive in warm, humid conditions and are ideal for beginners. They grow quickly and require less intensive infrastructure.
- Milky mushrooms (Calocybe indica) thrive in warmer environments and are increasingly favoured by small-scale farmers in the South.
- For over a decade, farmers across the country have been experimenting with shiitake mushrooms. These mushrooms are challenging to cultivate but have a niche demand due to their medicinal properties.
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Trust the process
Mushroom cultivation begins with compost, a nutrient-rich substrate often made from straw or sugarcane bagasse. According to mycologist Arun Gupta, wheat straw, though scarce in India, is ideal. Moisture is key; nutrition flows from compost to the mushrooms, with optimal moisture levels between 66–70%.
Next comes the process of spawning, where the “seed” of mushrooms is mixed into the compost. Depending on conditions, methods include surface or double-layer spawning. High-quality spawn is costly to import, so some farms opt to clone it, rejecting batches with slow growth or deformities.
After colonisation, casing soil is applied using a 4–5 cm layer of sterilised peat moss and lime, or loam mixed with sand or cow dung—added to retain moisture and trigger fruiting. Temperature (23-28°C), humidity (85%-90%), and carbon dioxide levels are closely managed for optimal growth.
Cropping begins 15 days after casing, as mushroom caps become visible. When they reach a length of 2.5-4 cm, harvesting can be done gently by hand. Mushrooms are twisted out carefully, preserving the casing, which is refilled and watered to allow multiple harvests in one cycle.
Trivia
- Scientists are building a global atlas of underground fungal networks, believing these hidden webs may help us weather climate change.
- Though lacking a brain, fungi behave like living algorithms, quietly making smart, strategic choices.
- After the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl in modern-day Ukraine, fungi were among the first life forms to reappear, thriving in radioactive ruins.
- Of the estimated 1.5 million fungal species, most remain undocumented.
- Long before species with a spine walked the land, the Earth was dotted with towering fungi called prototaxites—some even two-storey tall.