CASING SOIL
Mycelium above casing, shortly after cool down.
The quality in this first flush is comparable to a first flush with standard casing.
“What we have done is
demonstrate that our product,
provided all the conditions are met, works”
large-scale trial. We will be evaluating the results in early May. We have learned a lot thanks to the BDC. These insights will certainly contribute to our further development. We can now supply material with a better water reten- tion capacity, but there’s still progress to be made in optimising our processes. We naturally record the temperatures used in our tunnels, and use that experience to improve. Legro has also played a significant role here. We were able to perform the trials thanks to their logistics. They set up a professional mixing line especially for these trials. We will decide on the next steps after the evaluation. One of the problems asso- ciated with our product is the additional cost for growers. Unlike peat, we have to treat and hygienise the material. But the biggest additio- nal cost factor is, of course, transport. Logistics is something we need to look at very closely and make improvements where possible. Don’t for- get that, unlike a number of other parties, we do not receive any funding to support this series of validation trials. Everything has to be sourced from the market, which is why, once again, I am very grateful to the BDC growers for this oppor- tunity. The question now is what the future holds in relation to peat extraction. That, of course, is a political issue which is beyond our sphere of influence. What we have done is demonstrate that our product, provided all the conditions are met, works.
Export markets Thaler continues: “At Cormo, we are focusing on the markets that rely on imported casing soil
18 MUSHROOM BUSINESS
because there is no peat available locally. These markets, such as Australia, Japan and South Africa, often use a drier type of casing and are used to working with it. That makes the market a good fit with our product, as shown by the BDC trials. In addition, the price of casing is much higher than in Europe, due to the enormous transport costs. In these countries, maize is grown locally, and our idea is to build a licensed factory on location to produce substrate for casing soil. This could reduce the price of casing in those regions, while giving comparable results using finer and drier material. Our process has been patented. We probably started out in the most challenging market, where there is still an abundance of relatively cheap peat.
Availability of peat If no political pressure is exerted to restrict unlimited peat extraction, there is no need for alternatives. Peat is still the best and cheapest raw material for casing soil. In Germany, there are now calls for peat extraction and use to be significantly reduced from 2030 onwards. This makes the search for alternatives more of a necessity than a voluntary measure. The rest of Europe is sure to follow. Even if peat remains available in the medium term, the mushroom sector will still demonstrably have to reduce its peat use. Although finding a replacements for peat is not easy, there will ultimately be no other choice. In countries with no local availability of peat, this transition is likely to take place sooner due to the expected further rises in the costs of transport and raw materials.
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