One lesson to take from the case of Takeuchi Kinoko Labo is that small and mid-sized growers cannot rely on wholesalers or retail sales to support their businesses long-term. Like Atsushi did, growers have to think of ways to brand their product, increase profit margins, and put their own spin on the industry. A grower who bases their business model on selling 1 ton of premium fresh oyster mushrooms at local markets each month is exposed to many variables. Even if the amount goes unchanged, waste, swings in demand and price fluctuations make this kind of mushroom business very vulnerable.
One solution lies in finding ways to process mushrooms into specialty branded goods. Processing truly is killing two birds with one stone; a grower drastically increases the shelf-life of their product which in the case of mushrooms, with their short shelf-life and refrigeration requirements, is the biggest bottleneck in production. Plus, growers can sell their products for higher and more stable prices. As a bonus, some processed mushrooms like shiitake chips or oyster mushroom jerkies are easier and cheaper to ship than their fresh counterparts. The flip side is thinking of what consumers in a grower’s network want. Sashimi-style mushrooms worked very well in Japan, but will a typical British pensioner buy a fist-sized pickled mushroom, cut it themselves, and then eat it with wasabi and sake? A vegan sushi start-up in London, if such a venture comes to be, may pay premium for various exotic mushroom sashimi, but few others in the UK will. Mushroom jerky may taste great, but as Atsushi found, the appearance may be underwhelming and in the food industry, presentation and appearance are key. Atsushi was successful because he considered the taste profile, created a trademarkable name, made a suggested preparation (thin slices, aka sashimi), recommended pairings (wasabi and sake), and choose trendy packaging. A clear, unmarked 1 kilogram bag of maitake jerky is not going to sell as well or as high as a colorful, thoughtfully designed package of maitake jerky, even if both packages contain the exact same thing from the exact same farm.
This is all very basic, but perhaps because it is so basic_emdash_or because it is so unrelated to the focus-intensive grind of actually growing mushrooms_emdash_the question of how to sell the product is a problem that often comes up after the mushrooms are already grown. Selling fresh mushrooms, as many newcomers quickly find out, is often more difficult and time-consuming than growing them. At the very least, fresh mushrooms, whether Agaricus or exotic varieties, carry a substantial risk, even for large operations, as they are an easily-damaged perishable good with a short life of two weeks at most and a practical saleable date generally less than that. Even a business that is focused on supplying premium fresh mushrooms needs to have other products if only to process excess production. Whether in Japan, Europe, or elsewhere in the world, demand for mushrooms follows quite distinct, seasonal patterns with higher demand in autumn and winter and low demand in summer. However, market pressures make seasonal growing less and less practical for all but the select few who grow mushrooms as part of a larger portfolio of agricultural products (honey, jams, fruits, cheese, etc.). Having a way to process excess production in summer and then to sell that production can be the difference between a profitable business and an insolvent one.
The challenge here is that every mushroom variety is also unique and for growers who handle three or four varieties, that means tackling the technical vagaries of each individually. Abalone Mushrooms are, for instance, classified in the Pleurotus family and yet everything from their shape, to their distinctive smell and shellfish-like flavor are distinct from the more common oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus. Therefore, while the concept of branding and food preservation itself is so basic it barely needs mentioning, for a grower, this means in practice juggling many different forms of processing while considering the proclivities of the local market. When taken on top of the demands of managing a diverse growing portfolio, the challenge can be daunting. By highlighting successful mushroom-based products, the Japanese Exotic Mushroom Journal aims to inspire innovation and new mushroom products, and to show different templates for troubleshooting and product development.