Introduction

Total mushroom production worldwide has increased more than 18-fold in the last 32 years, from about 350,000 metric tons in 1965 to about 6,160,800 metric tons in 1997 (Table 1). The bulk of this increase has occurred during the last 15 years. A considerable shift has occurred in the composite of genera that constitute the mushroom supply.

During the 1979 production year, the button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus, accounted for over 70 percent of the world’s supply. By 1997, only 32 percent of world production was A. bisporus. The People’s Republic of China is the major producer of edible mushrooms, producing about 3,918,300 tons each year—or about 64 percent of the world’s total. China also produces more than 85 percent of all oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus spp.) grown worldwide (Table 2).

Table 1. World production of cultivated edible mushrooms in 1986 and 1997.

Source: Chang (1999)

Table 2. Estimated production (fresh weight) of oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus spp.) in some countries and regions in 1997.

Source: Chang (1999)

From 2001 to 2002, the United States produced 393,197 metric tons of mushrooms, or about 7 percent of the total world supply. A. bisporus accounted for over 90 percent of total mushroom production value, while Lentinula, Pleurotus, Grifola, Flammulina, Hypsizygus, Hericium, and Morchella were the main specialty genera cultivated. The value of the 2001–2002 specialty mushroom crop in the United States amounted to $37 million, down 12 percent from the 2000–2001 season. The average price per pound for specialty mushrooms received by growers, at $2.77, was down $0.27 from the previous season.

Sales volume of oyster mushrooms, at 4.03 million pounds, was up 11 percent from the 2000–2001 season, with a total of 51 growers producing 4.27 million pounds of the mushrooms in the 2001–2002 season. Total production includes all fresh market and processing sales plus amount harvested but not sold (shrinkage, cullage, dumped, etc.). Average oyster mushroom output per farm increased 249 pounds (18.3 percent) per week, from 1,359 pounds in 2001 to 1,608 pounds in 2002 (Table 3). The production of oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus spp.) in the United States has increased at an annual rate of 14 percent during the last 6 years, from 1,941,000 pounds in 1996 to 4,265,000 in 2002. This increase reflects an international trend toward increased production of this crop. Oyster mushrooms accounted for 14.2 percent (875,600 tons) of the total world production (6,161,000 tons) of edible mushrooms in 1997, the most recent year for which statistics were available.

Table 3. Estimated annual production (fresh weight) and production per week per grower of oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus spp.) in the United States, 1998–2002.

Source: USDA (2002)

The increase in United States production is due to increased consumer demand and the relatively high compensation growers receive for the product. According to the USDA, farmers received an average of $2.00 per pound for fresh oyster mushrooms while growers of A. bisporus received an average of $1.07 per pound for fresh product in the 2001–2002 growing season. The higher price received for fresh oyster mushrooms reflects, in part, the less-developed and less-reliable technology available to growers for cultivating these species. Thus, growers need potentially higher incomes to help offset the increased risks associated with producing Pleurotus spp.

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