Asia is undoubtedly the world's main mushroom producing area, accounting for 83% of global production. According to FAOSTAT, it reached 11.9 million tons in 2019. Pleurotus eryngii, better known as thistle mushroom, was implemented in a pioneering way in Europe by Fernandez Guridi Fungi.

“Pleurotus eryngii was imported to Spain from Asia. We decided to import this mushroom-growing production model so that we can produce it in our Pradejón factory,” said César Fernández Guridi. "The novelty of this system is that Pleurotus eryngii is grown in a bottle, which controls the amount of light the mushrooms receive and the level of carbon dioxide they are exposed to throughout the growth cycle."

"Once we inoculated the mycelium into the substrate, the substrate was produced by the Agruset Cooperative, our founding partner. We placed the bottle in a climate-controlled incubation room and provided the necessary conditions for it to start developing: 90% humidity , Normal initial carbon dioxide level and light."

"Just when the fungus starts to sprout, we remove the light and increase the carbon dioxide level. In this way, we make the mushroom's feet longer without opening the mushroom lid, allowing us to obtain an apricot with a trunk of almost the same thickness. Pleurotus as the person in charge," Cesar said. "There are about 25-30 mushrooms sprouted in each bottle. When they reach 4 to 6 cm in size, we harvest them, leaving only 1 to 2, and they grow between 10 and 15 cm. We sell mini Pleurotus eryngii, both individually and in a tray combined with Pleurotus ostreatus and Lentinus edodes, which are the other two mushrooms we specialize in."

Higher substrate yield per unit volume The Asian cultivation system used by Fernández Guridi Mushrooms can not only produce large pleurotus eryngii with characteristic shapes, but also provide consumers with fresh local products instead of imported mushrooms; as César Fernández pointed out, it It also increases the net yield per unit volume of compost.

"The bottles we cultivated have enough capacity to compost 700 grams. For other mushrooms, the productivity of the substrate is between 15% and 20%, but we grow more than 35% in bottles. From 700 grams of compost, we get more than 250 Gram of product, this is also due to the dilution we made at the beginning of the planting process, which makes the mushrooms we leave in each bottle thick and grow," he said. "Each cultivation cycle lasts for 3 weeks, after which we empty the jars. We reuse all the materials, refill them with compost and start a new cycle."

"We implemented this production system for Pleurotus eryngii in 2014. The first 3 or 4 years were more challenging. During this period, we are conducting research to improve raw materials and cultivation techniques. Today our output reaches 50 to 60 Ton."

The company controls the entire production process. The substrate is produced by the Agruset Cooperative, and Hongos Fernández Guridi grows, processes, packs and sells three types of mushrooms. "Almost all of our production is sold to the domestic market. Exports currently account for only 5% of our sales. Mushrooms are a very perishable product. We are very grateful to local customers. We cooperate with various customers, supermarkets, catering suppliers and Fruit cooperative and vegetable shop. In fact, retailer Eroski buys our mushroom varieties and distributes them through its large perishables platform in northern Spain, which is only an hour and a half away from our factory and is loaded 6 days a week ."

"Pleurotus eryngii is a mushroom that is sold everywhere. The same is true for shiitake; it has been launched longer, but today it works well in all chain stores and in restaurants. Pleurotus eryngii is already on the shelves, but its main The goal is that the catering service channel is in Spain. There are only two companies selling this mushroom. We found that more and more customers understand us and don’t mind paying more for higher-quality, fresher, and more localized products.

More information: César Fernández Guridi Hongos Fernández Guridi C/ Prado, 3 26510 Pradejón, La Rioja, Spain Tel: +34 658 956 120 cesar@hongosfernandezguridi.com www.hongosfernandezguridi.com

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