By Magda Verfaillie, Mycelia ESTONIA
An exciting fungi tour of Estonia
In January, Maidu Silm invited several international lignicolous mushroom experts to join Estionian fungi experts and researchers at the University of Tartu. Before and after the symposium, there was time for some fungi related exploration. And conk searching.
L Chaga elixir tasting.
et me start by providing some additio- nal information regarding the atmosp- heric photo in the heart of the previous issue of MB (no. 117), about the sympo-
sium on fungi production that took place at the University of Tartu, Estonia, on 25 January 2023.
Mushroom research in Estonia The event was an initiative of Maidu Silm, a rese- archer at the university and a passionate fan and promoter of fungi. He has been experimenting with the cultivation of various lignicolous mushrooms and mycomaterials for years, and realises better than anyone just how important basic hygiene knowledge is to this process. With this in mind, he invited several international experts in addition to local speakers. The aim was to provide professors, professionals and start- ups with an improved understanding of the issues involved in fungi production, and by extension mycomaterials. In and around Estonian universities, a lot of work has already focused on fungi, as proven by the presentations given by local researchers and entrepreneurs. Liisi Tampere (EMÜ/TTÜ) presen- ted her work on “Cultivation of mycelium com- posite material and comparison with expanded polystyrene”, Risto Nahksepp (EMÜ) shed light on “the Mechanical Properties of Heat-Pressed Mycelium Composites”, Kalev Adamson and Rein Drenkhan (EMÜ) presented a report on their cultivation trials with lignicolous mushrooms, and Siim Karro (Myceen, EST) presented some art and utensil designs made from mycomaterials. Robin Gurney then followed, who expanded on the market potential of chaga (Inonotus obliquus) and its associated products.
Jan Van Nuffel admiring a ganoderma seat at Myceen.
26 MUSHROOM BUSINESS
German-Belgian triumvirate Maidu had engaged a German-Belgian trium- virate for the “challenges in the preparation of
substrate for lignicolous mushrooms” section, due to their knowledge of the industrial produc- tion of mycelium and their experience in trouble shooting and providing training to industry professionals. Jürgen Kynast (Germany, Substratproduktion Kynast-Löcke) knows all the pitfalls when preparing substrate, Jan Van Nuffel (Belgium, MycoVision) is familiar with liquid fermentation of spawn, and I, Magda Verfaillie (Belgium, Mycelia), can talk for hours on end about risk prevention in mycelium production. The fourth expert was Mitchel Peter Jones, an Australian researcher at the University of Vienna, who conducts extensive research into industrial applications of mycelium. We did our utmost to stress to our audience the importance of applying strict hygiene procedures to mycelium produc- tion. It is incredibly important to provide the correct information, and in particular to those who want to save the world with fungi on the basis of untrustworthy internet-based sources. Sooner rather than later, a start-up will encoun- ter the vicious circle of infection. This leads to the failure of many start-ups early on in their development.
Ex Soviet hot water tank as substrate production unit.
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