State Horticulture Mission-Kerala to establish Mushroom villages in 50 more locations

Mushroom villages will be established in 50 locations across Kerala in the second phase of a State Horticulture Mission-Kerala (SHM-Kerala) programme aimed at attracting farmers and entrepreneurs to mushroom cultivation.

The scheme, Comprehensive Development of Mushroom Villages in Kerala, is aimed at the empowerment of rural women, income generation for farmers, nutritional security and spotlighting business opportunities in mushroom cultivation, Saji John, Mission Director, SHM-Kerala, said.

A ‘mushroom village’ consists of 100 small-scale mushroom production units, two large production units, one seed production unit, three processing units, two packing houses, ten compost units and training programmes. The State government had earlier cleared a proposal for establishing 100 such villages in Kerala under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY).

Phase one

In Phase 1, the programme was launched in selected blocks in 20 Assembly constituencies. “Phase 1 was launched in 2024-25. This phase will be completed this year,” Mr. John said.

In the second phase, mushroom villages are planned in selected agricultural blocks in 50 Assembly constituencies. Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode and Kannur districts will have five villages each, Thiruvananthapuram, Alappuzha and Kottayam four each and Kollam and Ernakulam, three each. Two villages each are planned in Idukki and Kasaragod and one each in Pathanamthitta and Wayanad. Six more mushroom villages will be established in Thrissur district as well, according to the SHM-Kerala.

Healthy food

In recent years, mushrooms have increasingly gained popularity as a healthy food. Button mushrooms are the most widely cultivated in India.

In Kerala, the oyster mushroom, milky mushroom and paddy straw mushroom are best suited for cultivation in the State’s climatic conditions, according to the SHM-Kerala officials. Among the oyster mushrooms, Pleurotus florida, Pleurotus sajor-caju and Pleurotus eous are the major varieties.