The organic mushroom farm Reiser, located in Rohrau, Lower Austria, is pioneering new methods in the production of high-quality mushroom substrate for organic mushroom cultivation. Just in time for the new year, the new substrate hall with a total capacity of 1,200m2 was put into operation. "With the new building in Mannersdorf am
Leithagebirge, we are expanding the capacities of our mycelium cultivation and can now offer mushroom substrates, i.e., the nutrient substrate permeated by the mushroom mycelium, to our local mushroom producers. This is somewhat comparable to the cultivation of young plants in vegetable farming," Managing Director David Reiser explains.
Facade of the new hall in August 2023
Economic Efficiency and Sustainability
The desire to produce the highest quality mushroom substrates as well as innovatively combine economic efficiency and sustainability, shaped this project, Reiser continues. "The entire earth mound hall is covered and greened with soil, with only the building front remaining free. The heat of the mushrooms, which is generated during the mycelium cultivation, creates a year-round cooling requirement in our rooms. The greened earth mantle of our building helps us actively reduce our energy needs and at the same time serves as a habitat, water and CO2 storage." Production is exclusively with sustainable energy, namely electricity from renewable sources, wood pellets for the steam boiler, and the use of heat recovery systems in steam production and ventilation systems.
Insights into the in-house organic mushroom cultivation: Shiitake (l) and King Oyster mushrooms (r).
Reiser, who also runs an organic arable farm, has been dedicated to the cultivation of gourmet mushrooms according to ecological guidelines for eight years now. The substrate required for his own cultivation operation was already produced on a modest scale. "In order to further expand our operation, the construction of a new hall according to the most modern standards was necessary," says Reiser, who thanks to the capacity expansion is able to produce and market approximately 20 to 30 tons of organic mushroom substrate weekly. "We are aided by good relationships with regional organic farmers, from whom we source organic straw among other things. What we cannot source locally still comes from Austria, for example from Styria."
Another motivating factor for expanding his substrate production was the strong growth of the Austrian organic mushroom industry.
"In recent years, many small operations and direct marketers have joined. Interestingly, in many cases these are farmers who have given up their livestock farming and are taking the leap into gourmet mushroom cultivation." Organic Shiitake, herb and oyster mushrooms can now be found nationwide in the branches of the large grocery store chains, emphasizes Reiser, who also supplies regional grocery markets with fresh mushrooms to some extent.
David Reiser (r) and his employee Claudia in the inoculation room.
Substrate Supply Slows Market Growth
At the same time, this year's inflation and the associated reluctance to buy have noticeably thrown back the Austrian organic market, especially the health food stores and organic supermarkets. "Nevertheless, the demand for organic mushrooms in regular grocery stores continues. In my opinion, the limiting factor for further growth in all organic gourmet mushrooms is the substrate supply. We want to change this now by not just talking about solutions, but actually implementing them."
2024 will be an exciting year in every respect for the committed mushroom grower. "We have just started production in the new substrate hall, but we find that many customers are eagerly waiting for us. We are still four people in production, but if everything goes according to plan, we want to gradually increase our staff to six or seven employees this year. Depending on customer needs, we would also like to add substrates for other gourmet mushroom varieties, such as Shimeji or Enoki, to our portfolio," Reiser concludes.
Images: Biopilzzucht Reiser GesbR
For more information:
David Reiser
Biopilzzucht Reiser GesbR
Am Teich 4a
2452 Mannersdorf am Leithagebirge
Phone: +43 680 3270994
bestellungen.biopilzzucht@gmail.com
https://biopilzzucht.at/