Mushroom cultivation in the developing world: A comparison of cultivation technologies

Food and financial insecurity are becoming prominent issues facing much of the developing world. As population densities in these already resource constrained regions continue to increase, it is inherent that a source of sustainable income and a reliable food source be provided, especially to rural populations. Mushroom cultivation is an environmentally benign, sustainable source of nourishment that is rapidly growing to become a profitable sector of agriculture. In high-resource settings, technological advancements have enabled farmers to maximize mushroom yields and quality while minimizing cost and input resources. However, these same benefits have not yet been realized in low- and middle-income settings and challenges characteristic to those contexts have hindered the development of mushroom cultivation. In order to better understand current efforts and their challenges, this article reviews cultivation technologies in both high- and low-resource settings. The outcomes of this review are then synthesized into a comparison of different cultivation technologies on the basis of cost, required resources, and overall success. Challenges and opportunities associated with mushroom cultivation in the developing world are also identified. For example, two prominent challenges in the developing world are spore production and post-harvest transportation and storage. Future practitioners, researchers, and entrepreneurs will be able to use this comparison to identify innovative ways in which the technological advancements of mushroom cultivation in high-resource settings can be applied to resource constrained environments.