Avondale, PA — Recent hurricanes Harvey and Irma have impacted mushroom growers in the south and southeast United States as well as Puerto Rico, resulting in a tightening of the market, according to the American Mushroom Institute (AMI). The supply of mushrooms for the next several months is likely to be impacted.
The back-to-back hurricanes caused heavy rains, flooding and an extended disruption of electrical power, an integral component of maintaining the proper environment for growing mushrooms. From compost to harvesting, the growing process depends heavily on electricity, in the form of climate-controlled growing houses, coolers and more. The lack of power during and after the hurricanes has caused mushroom farms in the affected areas to dispose of the impacted crops in all stages of production. Heavy rains also affected the farms, where the raw ingredients used in producing the growing medium (the substrate or compost) that contains the nutrients needed to produce the crop were damaged.
The regions affected accounted for over $281 million in sales last year. While recent weather events are a regional problem, mushroom farmers from around the country are working hard to fulfill orders as the holiday season approaches and demand ramps up. The holiday cooking season produces a 20 to 30 percent increase in demand for fresh mushrooms, according to a major shipper.
Lori Harrison, director of communications, AMI, said, “Every grower in the mushroom farming community is doing everything possible to supply their customers during this challenging time of demand for fresh mushrooms outpacing supply.”
About AMI
The American Mushroom Institute (AMI), headquartered in Avondale, PA, is a national voluntary trade association representing the growers, processors and marketers of cultivated mushrooms in the United States and industry suppliers worldwide. For more information, visit www.americanmushroom.org.
Source: The American Mushroom Institute (AMI)
