Mushroom cultivation changes Shubo's fortune

Shubo plucking mushroom grown in his small farm

Patuakhali: Shubo got success in mushroom cultivation in Kalapara of Patuakhali. The success of his mushroom cultivation has made the young and unemployed youth of the area interested in mushroom cultivation. 

Shubo sells 18 to 15 kg of mushrooms daily from his farm. He earns about one and a half lakh taka per month. In this Shubo's family has returned to prosperity.

Soumitra Majumdar Shubo, a successful mushroom farmer of Nawabganj village in Nilganj union of the upazila, said that he started working as a lawyer's assistant in Dhaka after passing LL.B. 

But during the Corona period, his income stopped a lot due to the virtual court operation on a limited scale. 

After receiving three months of training at the Sheikh Hasina National Youth Development Training Center in Savar on the advice of a German expatriate sister, Shubo came to alapara with a capital of one and a half lakh taka and started farming with 50 mushroom spawns. 

Currently, he has built a Payra mushroom center on 20 percent of the land in two sheds made of golpata and bamboo. Buyers are buying mushrooms directly and through Facebook page Payra Mushroom Center at the rate of 300 taka per kg, besides dry mushrooms are being sold at the rate of 2000 to 2500 taka per kg.

Mushrooms are grown in a plastic bag with a mixture of wet straw and a little lime. Other materials used are wood powder, wheat husk and chaff. Apart from sprinkling water in moderation three times, no maintenance is required. No need to use any kind of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. 

Shaded cool moist places are good for growing Mussoom. With proper maintenance it starts yielding in just 20 days. Every day Shubo sells 18 to 15 kg of mushrooms from his farm. Shubo hopes that he will be able to make his farm more prosperous if he gets government assistance or a low-interest loan.

Kalapara Upazila Agriculture Officer ARM Saifullah said that advice is being given to the mushroom farmer Shubo. Besides, he said that all kinds of support will be given to youths interested in mushroom cultivation.

Dr. Md. Zahid Hasan, Patuakhali Science and Technology University Department of Agriculture, said that mushrooms are delicious, nutritious and medicinal as food. 

There is a huge demand for mushroom in the country and abroad. Therefore, there is ample opportunity to earn foreign currency by exporting mushrooms from Bangladesh commercially. - Gofran Biswas