Costs Tk 65-70 a kilo to grow, but no buyers in the upazila

A 27-year-old diploma student in the Phulbari municipal area of Dinajpur started growing mushrooms at home as an experiment to help his family. On the advice of the Dinajpur Horticulture Centre and the upazila agriculture department, he obtained spawn and grew the mushrooms hanging from bamboo in a semi-pucca room still under construction in the courtyard. The production process began in January, and by February the mushrooms were ready to harvest. While he was staying in the hostel, his mother and father sprayed water on the spawn twice a day. By his reckoning the production cost is Tk 65–70 per kg, and his target wholesale price is Tk 250–300. On paper the profit is large, but the problem is the market: mushrooms are not known in Phulbari, and many locals do not even know they are food. Contacting hotels and restaurants has brought little response; a few have asked for samples, and he is waiting for their reply. He hopes to scale up if he can get a loan on easy terms or government support. The upazila agriculture officer said arrangements would be made to send him to the Mushroom Development Institute to build his skills.