Mushroom Farming Business Plan: How to start mushroom farming and where is the market?

Mushroom Farming Business Plan: If you work with a business plan for mushroom cultivation, then you can hold your own in this market. In this article, we are sharing the important details of the business plan model for growing mushrooms.

Many varieties of mushrooms are found in different countries, which are known for their special taste and nutritional value. Mushroom farming is done all over the world. Due to its high demand, mushroom farming is proving to be profitable and income-enhancing.

What is a mushroom?

A mushroom is a fungus with a cap and stem that grows due to soil or other substrates. Many sizes of mushrooms are found, from small to large. Let us tell you that fungi include yeast, mold and mushrooms. They decompose from dead organic debris and recycle nutrients.

Mushroom is a high protein food, which is liked by vegetarians. It is also rich in vitamins A, B, C and D. Mushroom is the choice of people who want to lose weight due to its low calories, and it is also full of nutrients. It also contains antioxidant, anti-cancer, as well as anti-diabetes properties. Mushroom also works as an immunity booster.

How to Start Mushroom Farming

Mushroom farming requires less resources and can be cultivated even in less fertile areas. The special thing is that mushrooms do not need sunlight to grow, because they get their nutrition from organic matter. Apart from this, mushroom cultivation does not require a lot of space as mushrooms can be grown comfortably on a rack in a closed room.

You can start the cultivation of white button mushrooms by preparing a shed, room or hut for mushroom production. For this, both permanent and temporary sheds are used. If you are short of capital, you can make a shed made of paddy straw. It costs about 30 thousand rupees to prepare a shed of bamboo and paddy straw. In a shed built in this way, you can prepare 12 to 16 mushroom growing slabs of 4 Χ25 feet size.

Mushroom Demand And Market

The latest ‘India Mushroom Market Report 2023-2028’ by the International Market Analysis Research and Consulting Group states that the mushroom market is expected to show a CAGR of 7.6 percent during 2023-2028. The global mushroom market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10 percent from 2022 to 2030, reaching US $ 50 billion.

Are you right for the mushroom business? (Why Mushroom Farming Business?)

To build a successful mushroom farm, you will need to understand the production costs and overheads of running your business. It is also important to understand who your competitors are and how to price your product.

If you work with a business plan for mushroom farming, then no one can stop you from moving ahead in this market. In this article, we are sharing mushroom growing business plan models and everything you will need, but first it is important to know whether mushroom business is profitable for you?

Not everyone can be ideal for mushroom business, there are many factors behind it. Here are some signs whether mushroom growing is right for you or not.

You should be motivated and self-controlled, because your success or failure in this business depends entirely on you. In order to grow your mushroom business, you need to be willing to put in a lot of time and energy into it, as any type of farming requires physical labor, and mushroom farming is no different.

Get Experience Growing Mushrooms Before Starting on a Large Scale

Before you start growing mushrooms on a large scale, you should first successfully grow small batches of mushrooms. This will not only help you learn more about the mushroom growing process but will also help you figure out if mushroom farming is something you want to turn into a business. You will also need to find wholesalers, farmers markets, and other marketing networks to market your product.

Mushroom Varieties

The most important thing to start mushroom cultivation is which variety of mushroom you want to grow. You can grow oyster mushroom in the beginning, because its cultivation is easy. Then you can grow white button mushroom, shiitake mushroom, black ear mushroom. However, it also depends on the demand of which type of mushroom is in your area.

Dhigri Mushroom Cultivation- Dhigri mushroom cultivation requires thatch. Which is prepared from bamboo, bricks and polythene and straw. You can prepare it of any size. Dhigri mushroom seeds should always be used fresh. The room should be cleaned with formalin two days before sowing. When the Dhigri is completely ready, then it should be harvested. When the outer edges of the Dhigri umbrella start turning completely upwards, then it should be harvested. Harvest after sprinkling water. The cost of one kg of Dhigri is 15-20 rupees, but its price in the market is 30 to 50 rupees per kg.

Dudhiya Mushroom- Dudhiya mushroom looks like white button mushroom but it is quite long and the base is thick. It requires high temperature. It gives more yield at high temperature of 30 to 40 degree centigrade. When the cap of the mushroom becomes 5-6 cm thick, then it should be broken. Its production cost is 20 to 25 rupees, but in the market it is sold for 60 to 80 rupees per kg.

Important things to make a mushroom farm

Always prepare the mushroom room in the east-west direction. The farm should be made in an open place or where there is no pollution. The path from one rack to another should be up to 2 feet. There should be water drainage, electricity arrangement, cleanliness.

You can start a mushroom farm with a little investment. When it comes to the financial side of your mushroom growing business, there are many factors to consider.

How is your financial situation? Do you have the money needed to invest to start your mushroom business, or will you need to take a loan?

Before starting a mushroom business, you need to know how much savings you have and how much money you can spend on farming. At the same time, if you need to take a loan to start this business, then you have to consider how and from where to take it.

How will you compete in the mushroom business? (Competition In Mushroom Farming Business?)

There will be more customers of mushrooms in big cities, but there will also be more producers to compete. For this, you have to focus on quality and price along with your productivity. You also have to focus on who your potential customers are. How many hotels and restaurants, grocery stores and other customers are there in your area or city who would like to buy your mushrooms.

Materials to start mushroom farming

This includes the cost of purchasing spawn, substrate, grow bags, disinfectants, gloves and other materials that you will use in your business. The bigger your mushroom farming operation, the more of these materials you will need.

Other expenses in mushroom farming include rent, taxes, telephone bills, utilities, employee expenses and interest on loans. You will have to account for these payments, no matter how much or less mushrooms you are producing.

It is difficult to estimate exactly how much money you will spend in the beginning, as every area has different conditions and costs. If a person is starting in a shed or room that he already has, he may only need to invest in the equipment and materials he will need. As you grow, your material costs will also increase.

Business Plan for Mushroom Growing

It is very important to make a budget. A good business plan also helps you assess the competition, create sales and marketing strategies, and more. If you want to take a loan from a bank, they will definitely want to see your business plan. This lets them know how serious you are about your business and that you have thought about all the pros and cons. A business plan also helps you find out if mushroom growing can turn into a successful and profitable business.

How much investment do you need for a mushroom farm?

In today’s time, mushroom business is proving to be very profitable. You can make profits with very little investment in it. You can start mushroom business from your home and start this business with an investment of just Rs 5000.

Raw materials required in mushroom cultivation

This includes things like mop and bucket, screwdriver, electric cycle timer, humidifier and respirator. Most of these items can be purchased at the local hardware store. Use disposable plastic sacks or buckets with holes in them to germinate the mushrooms to grow the fungus. You will need to purchase the substrate, which can be straw or wood chips.

Materials for making the incubation chamber

This includes things like vinyl flooring or waterproof floor paint, a sink, plumbing pipes, a 45 gallon food grade steel drum, shelving, lighting, fans, and more. All of these items can be purchased from hardware stores. You have to decide whether you want to grow mushrooms on cardboard, sawdust, coffee grounds, or any other substrate. Mushroom spawn and grow bags can be purchased locally.

Is mushroom farming a profitable business?

Mushroom farming can be very lucrative and profitable. You can start your small mushroom farm with less space and low cost. By cultivating mushrooms in just one room, you can easily earn 3 to 4 lakh rupees, that too by spending only 50 to 60 thousand rupees. Wheat-soybean straw and grains are used to grow mushrooms. Good varieties of mushrooms Pleurotus ostreas and Ganodroma variety can be grown at low cost in wheat and soybean straw.

Mushroom growing seeds and conditions needed

Mushrooms need different conditions to fruit depending on the stage of growth they are at. Your mushroom growing business needs a mixture, an inoculation area, an incubation chamber and a fruiting room.

The mixture and the inoculation area should be clean, where you can mix the mushroom spawn with the substrate and place it in bags. The conditions in this room should be comfortable for you to work in.

The incubation chamber should be dark and the temperature should be between 20 and 24 C (68 to 75 F). The high CO2 content is an added bonus. This is where the mushroom spawn rehouses the entire substrate in preparation for fruiting. Once your mushroom growing bags are fully settled, they are moved to the fruiting room. The growing room must have a relative humidity of 80 to 90 percent.

Mushrooms also need some light for pinning and fruiting. Either LED rope lights or fluorescent lights in waterproof housing will work. The growing room also needs a lot of air. You will need to install fans to bring in fresh air and expel CO2-rich air.

The seed used in mushroom cultivation is called spawn. For a higher yield of mushrooms, the seed should be of pure and good quality. Spawn produced from mushroom fruiting culture is produced in a germ-free environment. Spawn giving the highest yield can be prepared in the laboratory.

Method of making compost

To make compost, husk or paddy straw has to be soaked and after a day, DAP, urea, potash, wheat bran, gypsum and carbofuran should be mixed and left to rot. Then after one and a half months, its compost is ready. Cow dung manure and soil are mixed together in equal amounts and a layer of about one and a half inches is spread over it. A two-three inch thick layer of compost is applied over it. To maintain moisture, the mushrooms should be sprayed two to three times a day. A layer of one to two inches of compost is applied over it and thus the production of mushrooms begins.

Diseases in mushrooms and their management

Like crops, mushrooms also suffer from many types of diseases. The chances of diseases are high because they are grown in a room and also contain 90 percent water. Here the diseases that occur in mushrooms are being explained.

Dry bubble – Due to this disease, brown spots start appearing on the cap of the mushroom. The stem also starts bursting. To prevent this, a 20 percent solution of Dithane M-45 should be sprayed.

Wet bubble – Due to this disease, the mushroom starts looking strange, its stem swells and it gets filled with brown water. Immediately after casing, spray sporgon in it.

Net disease-

A light white coloured web starts spreading on the casing soil, which after some time covers the mushroom completely. Due to which the mushroom starts rotting from inside. To prevent this, reduce the humidity in the room, and also spray 20% nitro benzene solution.

Fungal disease- Fungi also harm the mushroom crop. Brown plaster, white plaster, yellow fungus, green layer fungus, inky cap, virtual truffle, lipstick fungus are the fungi that grow in mushroom crops.

Mistakes in mushroom growing and ways to avoid them

Here are some common mistakes in mushroom business and how to avoid them.

It is likely that when you first start a mushroom farming business, you will face problems and failures.

It is best to fail small at the beginning, rather than face a devastating loss of a large-scale crop.

Make sure you know and understand the entire process of growing mushrooms. Go through it a few times before expanding your operation.

Not buying a lot of equipment from the start, investing too much in them. Mushroom growing is a business that you can actually start and start with little money.

You have to figure out what equipment is most needed for the techniques and varieties you want to use. If possible, try to do without anything extra in the beginning.

Instead of taking a loan at the beginning, you can always reinvest the profits in the business later.

Try to learn it all yourself. You need to learn from people who know a lot about these mushroom farming, doing so will benefit you greatly.

You can learn from people’s mistakes and avoid wasting your time or money.

Handling and Care of Mushrooms

In a small mushroom business, handling and climate play a key role. Mushrooms are sensitive to bruising. As a result, they must be handled properly during shipping and display at retailers.

Selling of Mushrooms

Mushrooms are in short supply in the market and in high demand, so their prices are always high. You can sell mushrooms in stores, supermarkets in your area, as well as sell online by starting an internet store.

Mushroom varieties have different prices, so you have to see which variety matches your budget. Mushrooms can be classified as follows-

Button mushrooms, contain high amount of proteome.

Shiitake, Lion’s Mane and Oyster mushrooms are kept in the category of wild mushrooms. These can be easily grown.

Paddy straw mushroom is a type of mushroom, which is grown in paddy fields.

Pink oyster mushroom is in demand all over the world, which is easily available from small and big supermarkets to neighborhood grocery stores. It is the choice of health conscious people, they contain protein, fiber and minerals in large quantities.

Straw mushrooms are grown in a temperature of 35 degrees to 45 degrees Celsius.

License to start mushroom business

GST registration is very important for business. Along with this, FSSAI registration and trade license are necessary.

Mushroom business and production in India

Different varieties of mushrooms are found in the country. Some of these varieties produce a lot. If we talk about these, button mushrooms produce a total of 10 to 15 kg per square foot. There is a demand for oyster mushrooms in India, the price of this mushroom is around Rs 150. At the same time, button mushrooms are sold at the rate of Rs 120 to 150 per kilogram.

Start by taking training in mushroom cultivation

You can get training in mushroom cultivation by going to the agricultural universities and agricultural research centers of the country. If you are planning to start mushroom cultivation on a large scale, then it is better that you get trained properly once.

Subsidy on mushroom cultivation

In view of the increasing demand for mushrooms, farming is becoming a profitable deal. The Government of India is also giving subsidy to promote mushroom farming. State governments are also moving forward in this direction. In this episode, the Bihar government gives up to 90 percent subsidy to mushroom farmers.