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Challenges and opportunities for the biological control of mushroom phorid flies using predatory mites

Phorid flies (Megaselia halterata) are a significant pest in button mushroom cultivation systems and are currently an issue on a number of Australian farms. Gravid females are attracted to the odour of actively growing mycelium during both spawn run and fill, and lay eggs in the compost.

While emerging larvae feed directly on mushroom mycelium, their significant impact on yield and quality is mainly due to their ability to vector mites, Lecanicillium fungicola (dry bubble) and Trichoderma aggressivum (compost green mould). This makes them a significant biosecurity risk to individual farms.

Read the full article in MushroomLink

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Interpreting the principles of pinning

“I THINK OF MUSHROOM CULTURE AS A MOSAIC. THERE’S A LOT OF PIECES THAT ALL HAVE TO FIT TOGETHER PERFECTLY IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE THE BIG PICTURE.”

So says Raymond Samp, a lifelong student of the entire Agaricus mushroom mosaic.

Managing pinning is a key piece of that puzzle. This means that understanding the pinning process is essential for growers to control mushroom quality and meet market requirements.

Read the full article in MushroomLink

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Mushroom levy-funded Nuffield Fellowship

Travel the world and discover new opportunities for the mushroom industry with a prestigious Nuffield Scholarship. Receive a $40,000 bursary to step back from your business and grow your skills.

This is a unique opportunity for professionals across all agricultural sectors—including those in the mushroom industry—to connect with global experts, expand networks, and drive change. Whether you’re interested in cutting-edge production methods, sustainability, or market development, this scholarship allows you to research a topic that can transform your business, community, and industry.

Read the full article in MushroomLink

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Mini mushroom growers

The AMGA is excited to launch MU23006: Mushroom Schools Education Program, a refreshed version of the successful ‘Mushrooms in Schools’ program, running since 2020. This initiative introduces new branding and the Mushroom Family characters, making mushroom education more engaging and accessible for young learners. The program’s revamped branding ensures a modern, fun, engaging, and visually appealing experience for students and educators alike.

Read the full article in MushroomLink

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Meet the mushroom R&D SIAP

The Mushroom R&D Strategic Investment Advisory Panel (SIAP) provides Hort Innovation with advice about how mushroom R&D levy funds should be invested to deliver value for levy payers and the industry.

The SIAP oversees the development and execution of the Mushroom Strategic Investment Plan (SIP), provides advice to Hort Innovation guided by SIP investment priorities, identifies and endorses RD&E opportunities, and assists with monitoring and evaluation of levy funded projects. Dr Carly Rosewarne interviewed the panellists and the AMGA CEO to get their thoughts – why they joined, industry challenges and opportunities, fungi facts, and the best ways to enjoy eating mushrooms.

Read the full article in MushroomLink

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Establishment of the Marsh Lawson Mushroom Research Unit

December 2024 marked the 20th anniversary of the official opening of the Marsh Lawson Mushroom Research Unit (MLMRU) at Sydney University.

The Unit is currently undergoing a major renovation and has quite a history, occupying as it does a prime piece of real estate right at the edge of the Chancellors Oval at Gadigal Green. But how did our small, experimental unit come to be in such a valuable location? And why does it even exist?

Read the full article in MushroomLink

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MushroomLink Magazine Issue 12

We hope you enjoy this issue, with its usual mix of R&D news, the latest in technology from around the world, and pest and disease updates.

You can subscribe to an e-copy of MushroomLink magazine here or view previous issues here

Click here to download the magazine

Articles

Levy funded project updates

Marketing

Growing & Tech

Pest & Diseases

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Poster: MushroomLink project (MU21003)

This poster provides a visual overview of MushroomLink, the Australian mushroom industry's communication project. It highlights how research findings are transformed into practical resources for growers through newsletters, webinars, fact sheets, and more. To access the full poster and explore industry insights, download the full poster here.

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Poster: Food Safety Extension and adoption for food safety, quality and risk management (MU20000)

This poster provides a visual summary of key food safety initiatives in the Australian mushroom industry. It highlights efforts to support growers with best practices, training resources, and regular testing to ensure consumer confidence. For an easy overview, you can download the full poster here.

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Australian Mushrooms Sampling Program Boosts Sales and Consumer Engagement

Hort Innovation Marketing Update March 2025

The Australian Mushrooms in-store sampling program is in full swing, delivering impressive results and encouraging more shoppers to regularly add mushrooms to their meals. Running across Woolworths, Coles, and independent retailers nationwide, the program aims to inspire new ways to cook with mushrooms and increase consumption

Building on the success of the 2023 program, which conducted over 1,300 sampling sessions and successfully converted 71 per cent of participants to purchase mushrooms, the 2024/25 program is already making a positive impact.

Sessions are being conducted in four major bursts, incorporating two summer and two winter recipes – these include:

·      Thai Pork Mushroom Meatballs (Winter)

·      Tapas Style Garlic Mushrooms (Summer)

·      Lemon and Herb Mushroom Bruschetta (Summer)

·      Mushroom Bolognese (Winter)

Burst one – April to August 2024

In burst one, 331 sampling sessions were conducted in Coles and Woolworths stores across NSW, VIC, QLD, SA, and WA, handing out an average of 88 Thai Pork and Mushroom Meatball samples per session. Engagement was strong, with 71 per cent of shoppers that interacted with sampling staff choosing to try a sample. Sales performance was equally as impressive, with 12kg of loose mushrooms and 20 pre-packed mushrooms sold on average per session.

Burst two – November 2024 to February 2025

The second burst of the sampling program saw over 17,500 Tapas-Style Garlic Mushroom samples distributed across Woolworths, Coles, and independent supermarkets nationwide. Sampling staff interacted with shoppers on average 125 times per session, with 70% converting to trying a sample. Sales results remained strong, with an average of 12.2kg of loose mushrooms and 25.8 pre-packed mushrooms sold per sampling session. In total, 201 sessions were completed during this burst, providing plenty of opportunities for shoppers to experience the delicious, rich flavour of Australian Mushrooms.

Upcoming sampling sessions

The third burst of the program is currently live, featuring Lemon and Herb Mushroom Bruschetta in 459 Woolworths, Coles, and Independent stores across NSW, VIC, QLD, SA, and WA until April. As the program progresses, the fourth burst will launch from April to June 2025, shifting to a Mushroom Bolognese recipe and targeting 330 Woolworths, Coles and Independent stores nationwide.

With each burst, the program continues to demonstrate the power of sampling in boosting mushroom sales and consumer engagement. Stay tuned for more updates on its success!

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Stuart Whitehall and Umberto Calvo on drip irrigation & supplements

In this MushroomLink podcast, Stuart discusses the strategic use of drip irrigation with AHR’s own mushroom grower Umberto Calvo. Umberto has conducted trials with a similar system at the March Lawson Mushroom Research Unit. With the potential to improve later flushes and even create nutritionally enhanced mushrooms, our panel discuss the mixed challenges and solutions offered by drip irrigation for mushrooms.

Podcast hosted by Dr Jenny Ekman, AHR.

Stuart Whitehall from Nutrigain has been working with mushrooms almost his entire life. Growing up on a family farm, he earned his pocket money selling spent compost from the tender age of 9. Over several decades in the industry he has both witnessed and driven a host of innovations, from spawn production and trading to biological pest control with nematodes. Stuart has now diversified into nutritional supplements, including the delivery of liquid solutions through drip irrigation systems. 

Umberto Calvo from AHR graduated in 2018 from the Università di Torino in Italy, and recently came to Australia to explore agricultural sciences in a completely different environment. With experience in Precision Viticulture in Spanish wine regions he is interested in precision and data-driven agriculture, remote sensing and horticulture crops. He is currently involved in a wide variety of projects from post-harvest avocado quality to mushroom growing techniques.

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Complementing management with biological agents - Aimee McKinnon

Aimee is a research scientist for Agriculture Victoria in the Microbial Sciences, Pests, and Diseases (MSPD) group. With expertise in microbial-based biopesticides (biorationals) for use in integrated pest and disease management (IPDM), Aimee’s research focuses on understanding how microbial agents work to control insect pests and pathogens when applied to growing systems, with the broader aim to determine synergistic management practices, and to optimise the delivery of biological control agents. Since 2022, Aimee has been reviewing and evaluating prospective biopesticide agents and formulations for their efficacy to control key pests and diseases of commercial mushrooms in Australia, with a focus on mushroom flies and the pathogens that they may vector.

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