Sales of mushrooms such as king trumpet mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms - especially organic ones - are lower than those of mushrooms such as champignons. Nevertheless, the king trumpet mushrooms from Lan Bio Funghi Land Ltd are seeing a brisk demand, Gerhard Dannapel tells us: "Particularly regionally, in the Berlin area, we were able to record an increase in sales in the natural food trade, compared to last year. The mild aroma, firmness to the bite and the diverse preparation possibilities of the king trumpet mushrooms seem to appeal to the palates of many consumers in the West rather than, for example, the shiitake mushroom."
Gerhard Dannapel (left) of Lan Bio Funghi, Brandenburg's State Secretary for Agriculture Anja Boudon (center) and FÖL Managing Director Michael Wimmer (right). Photo: FÖL e.V.
Demand for king trumpet mushrooms back to normal range
The company from Brandenburg also markets its goods to regional greengrocers, among others, through which the catering industry and communal catering are supplied in part. "The mushrooms are being sold almost with in the same numbers as those of the pre-Corona era. An important market for us is still made up by the natural food retailers, as well as organic stores. Our mushrooms are sold nationwide, of which about five percent are in turn exported to other European countries," Dannapel said.
"While we did not experience any concrete losses, we had to update our market strategy orientation and also to focus more on shiitake in order to make better use of our capacities. This is because it was not easy for us to compete with prices from abroad. Manufacturing costs in Germany continue to grow, while consumers prefer regional goods, but the price difference should not be too great."
Price adjustment below 10 percent
Apart from that, as in any business, the company's production capacity is relatively limited as well, he said. And then there are the horrendous costs. "Production is not yet at 100 percent. This is simply not possible given the costs, as we are heavily dependent on gas for cultivation. There have been price adjustments on our part, but they have been less than 10 percent. However, it must be said that there have been no price adjustments at all for far too long. Price adjustments of just under 20 percent would be necessary to ensure profitability in the long term, but long-term planning is rather difficult as things stand."
The company can market 10 to 12 tons of mushrooms per week, of which one-third are shiitake and the remaining two-thirds are king trumpet mushrooms. Since king trumpet mushrooms and shiitake are rather a niche product, the company tries to market the goods mainly through focused promotions.
For more information:
Gerhard Dannapel
Lan Bio Funghi Land GmbH
Gewerbepark 16
D-16833 Fehrbellin
Tel. +49-(0)33.932-614.410
[email protected]
https://www.biopilze-brandenburg.de
