New techniques to boost mushroom production in India's Kashmir
Due to these issues, agricultural experts introduced a new technique using polythene bags to grow mushrooms and increase the production. "Firstly, the polythene bags are really cheap and easily available in the market. Secondly, there isn't much of investment in this as well. If we talk about plastic, wooden or iron trays, there is a lot of investment required in which our farmers can't afford, so the polythene bags are the best alternative. The response that we are getting from farmers is really good," said Gadotra.
A grower, Ali Mohammad, expressed that boost in mushroom production could become a viable source of income for the farmers and for the unemployed youth. "If our production increases, we will not have to import mushrooms from outside. There is a lot of scope for mushroom production here, if the production gets a boost, there will be more employment also and we will benefit from this," said Mohammad.
"The agriculture department called me here to learn. I saw that the trays that were made from wood and iron were very expensive and the new technique of using the polythene bags is far cheaper and is very beneficial for the growers and is more productive," said another mushroom grower Mohammad Shafi Wani.
Source: business-standard.com
