Black termite mushrooms grown in cold rooms: 'You get what you pay for'

TIEN GIANG Grown in a cold room, 'in air conditioning', black termite mushrooms have excellent quality, the retail price currently ranges from 270 - 350 thousand VND/kg but still attracts buyers.

Arriving at Giong Lanh 1 hamlet, Tang Hoa commune (Go Cong district, Tien Giang), asking for Mr. Tran Quoc Bao's house (born in 1991), everyone here knows and clearly shows the way to this young man's house. He has become more known to the people since the day he started growing black termite mushrooms, a relatively new economic model in this locality.

Black termite mushrooms are popular in the market thanks to their delicious quality and guaranteed safety. Photo: Minh Dam.

Black termite mushrooms are grown by him in a closed room with air conditioning. The product is very popular in the market because it is produced according to organic processes, without using any chemicals, so it is safe.

Taking us on a tour of the mushroom farm, he shared that the mushroom growing process is very simple. First, buy a bag of mushroom spawn, tie it tightly, put it in a cold room and keep it at a temperature of 28 - 29 degrees Celsius, do not turn on the light (dark incubation), after about 3 weeks the mushrooms will grow, then open the bag, put in coconut fiber, water, light (light incubation), after 2 weeks start harvesting. Every day, just water the bag of spawn with a spray bottle to keep the humidity just right.

During the care process, if mold is found in the spawn, it must be removed from the room. In addition, if ants or flies are found, spray the wall with a pesticide to treat it, but do not spray directly on the spawn.

When the mushrooms emerge from the coconut fiber layer, they need to be harvested promptly. They must be harvested every 8 hours, otherwise they will quickly wither. When harvested, the mushrooms need to be cleaned of their stems, put in bags, vacuum-sealed and stored in the refrigerator. The mushrooms can keep good quality for 7-10 days.

Watering black termite mushrooms. Photo: Minh Dam.

From the time of picking the first mushroom, the grower harvests continuously for 3.5 months, each bag will yield 300 - 350g. After that, they need to be removed to clean the farm, isolate the diseased mushrooms for 2 months, and prepare for the next batch.

Currently, Mr. Bao has 6,000 bags of mushroom spawn. He harvests 3 times a day, from 5 to 6 kg, and on days when the mushrooms grow well, they can grow over 10 kg.

The mushrooms are sweet and crunchy, and are rated by many consumers as 70-80% more delicious than natural termite mushrooms (gray termite mushrooms). Therefore, although black termite mushrooms have been on the market for quite a while, their value has not decreased. Currently, the retail price of black termite mushrooms ranges from 270-350 thousand VND/kg, depending on the location and quality. The wholesale price for restaurants is lower, however, Mr. Bao revealed that after deducting expenses, the monthly income ranges from 13-15 million VND.

According to him, black termite mushrooms are easy to grow but require a fair amount of investment capital, including the cost of building a farm, buying shelves, air conditioners, misting fans, mushroom spawn (14,000 VND/spawn)...

Harvesting black termite mushrooms. Photo: Minh Dam.

“The first time I spent 200 million VND. Every month, the electricity cost is 2 million VND, coconut fiber is 2 million VND. The cost is quite high but in return, I have income every day, I don’t need to work for hire,” Mr. Bao shared.

However, he also said that although black termite mushrooms are easy to grow, they must have a ready outlet because the price of mushrooms is high. With the accumulated experience, in the near future, Mr. Bao will expand the scale of the farm to 19,000 embryos to increase production and meet market demand.

Mr. Tran Quoc Bao, with his diligence and hard work, has succeeded in growing black termite mushrooms. In the locality, he also participates in the Youth Union and is willing to share his mushroom growing experience with people and friends around. Currently, in Tang Hoa commune, another black termite mushroom farm has been expanded.

Currently, the black termite mushroom growing model is being researched and tested by people, so the mushroom spawn is also in high demand.

Mr. Huynh Van Cuong, Director of Huynh Cuong Production - Trading Company Limited in Tan Phu Dong District (Tien Giang) said that the company has been supplying black termite mushroom spawn to people since 2016. Currently, the company supplies 20,000 - 30,000 bags of spawn to farmers in the provinces from Binh Thuan to the South each month. Because the spawn needs to be incubated in a cold room for about 2 months, people in need need to contact in advance to get the goods.

Source: https://nongsanviet.nongnghiep.vn/nam-moi-den-trong-trong-phong-lanh-dat-xat-ra-mieng-d388030.html