Ms. Kabaka Loraine, a Kenyan youth has embraced mushroom farming that has made her a trendsetter and illustrates the power of small solutions to address large-scale challenges like climate change.

Her work demonstrates how mushroom farming, a seemingly modest agricultural practice, holds immense potential as a sustainable and high-yielding approach with significant benefits for climate change mitigation.

Inspired by the innovative work of Ecovative, an American company producing leather from mushroom mycelium, Ms. Loraine has embraced value-added mushroom products as a key focus of her enterprise.

Recognizing the untapped potential of mushroom farming in Kenya, Ms. Loraine sought to acquire the necessary skills before embarking on production.

Her inspiration was guided by data from the National Farmers Information Survey revealing a significant gap between Kenya’s annual mushroom production (500 tons) and the existing demand (1,200 tons).  This disparity, she believes, presents a lucrative opportunity for farmers to achieve high yields and substantial returns by implementing proper farming practices.

As an environmentally conscious young farmer, Ms. Loraine emphasizes the sustainable nature of mushroom farming, highlighting its capacity for a complete production cycle, from cultivation to waste management.

She notes that mushroom farming can be done in minimal space, requiring only a simple structure. Moreover, mushrooms thrive on agricultural waste, contributing to a circular economy by breaking down organic matter. Wastes can nourish the mushroom crop or be returned to the soil as a valuable fertilizer.

One of the main challenges Ms. Loraine faced was the lack of readily available information on mushroom farming. However, with her father’s support, she pursued studies at the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, gaining access to a laboratory for her research.

Ms. Loraine’s research focuses on utilizing mushroom mycelium as an alternative to plastic bags commonly used in seedling growth and packaging, directly addressing environmental concerns associated with plastic waste.

However, she admits that the initial capital investment and mastering the planting process presented significant challenges. She recalls losing her first crop to a fungus gnat infestation, forcing her to restart the process.

“The first time I started mushroom farming, I encountered an insect called the fungus gnat, which destroyed my entire crop. I had to restart the process,” says Ms. Kabaka Loraine.

Undeterred, Ms. Loraine continued to refine her techniques, emphasizing the importance of maintaining optimal growth conditions and humidity levels for successful mushroom farming. She points out that even seemingly minor errors, like improper pasteurization of the substrate, can have devastating consequences, leading to outbreaks of green mold (Trichoderma) that can wipe out entire crops.

“Another common mistake, which I experienced during my initial trials, is improper pasteurization of the substrate,” she says.

While initially focused on mushroom farming for consumption, Ms. Loraine envisions a future where value-added products play a central role in addressing the perishability of the crop. She takes pride in having created the prototype for biodegradable planters using mushroom mycelium, although scaling up this project has been hampered by funding limitations.

Ms. Loraine’s passion for research led her to the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), where she is researching on mushroom spore production. Her research aims to reduce input costs by utilizing insect frass as a substrate and increasing yields.

Additionally, she is developing locally produced spores, which are more affordable than imported alternatives. This innovation has the potential to make mushroom farming accessible to a wider range of farmers, including those in arid and semi-arid regions.

Ms. Loraine’s commitment to knowledge sharing is evident in her partnership with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), where she trains staff in mushroom farming techniques. This initiative will solve the protein shortages while promoting sustainable waste recycling through mushroom cultivation.