Targeting hot pot side dishes, he grew mushrooms and successfully paid off his debts
Original title: Targeting hot pot, specializing in side dishes means good business
Li Yijuan picking edible fungi.
"As the weather gradually turns colder, more and more people are eating hot pot, and these days edible fungi sell very well, with prices stable and rising slightly." Recently, Li Yijuan, a villager from Miaoba Village, Sanyuan Town, Fengdu County, said to the writer while picking enoki mushrooms (Flammulina filiformis) in a greenhouse. As the main side dishes for hot pot, edible fungi such as enoki mushrooms, oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus), king oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus eryngii), and straw mushrooms (Volvariella volvacea) are very popular. With the help of the poverty alleviation village task force staff, she learned edible fungus cultivation techniques, and increased income is now in sight.
Unable to afford it
Li Yijuan is 43 years old this year and has a son and a daughter. Her son is currently studying at Shandong Qingdao University, and her daughter is studying at Chongqing Technology and Business University. "The tuition and living expenses for the two children cost thirty to forty thousand yuan a year. My husband and I farm at home and simply cannot afford this expense." She said that in recent years her family has piled up heavy debts and was listed by the town as a registered poor household.
To change the situation, two years ago she and her husband tried growing vegetables and raising pigs. The couple worked from dawn to dusk, one managing the home and the other handling outside affairs. Although it was hard, there was joy amid the hardship. But ordinary seasonal vegetables could not fetch a good price when they flooded the market at the same time, and the live pig market was also unstable, so they felt there was no way to wealth.
Planning mushroom cultivation
Just when she was very anxious, the village task force came to investigate and learn about her family's production and living conditions. After analyzing her family's situation and the market conditions of the county's and town's catering industry, the staff suggested that she use greenhouses to cultivate edible fungi and specialize in the side-dish business for hot pot restaurants.
"My husband and I know how to grow vegetables and grain, and we also know how to raise pigs and cattle, but we have never grown edible fungi." Li Yijuan was very worried.
The task force promptly invited experts in edible fungus cultivation to come to their home, teach them techniques, and take the two of them to buy steel frames, plastic film, and other materials, and build a greenhouse covering about 700 sq m.
From material preparation, disinfection, fermentation, bagging, and inoculation to steaming pots, installing the greenhouse, and putting things on shelves, as well as how to spray water, harvest mushrooms, trim mushrooms, and dry them after fruiting... "The experts came personally to teach us these detailed tasks hand by hand." She said that each type of fungus has a different production cycle and cultivation method. "For example, enoki mushrooms are delicate by nature and must be carefully managed at all times." "For another example, oyster mushrooms are relatively more likely to be eroded by diseases, so sterilization work must be done especially well."
Paying off debts
Because of her strong techniques, the enoki mushrooms Li Yijuan grew had good color, uniform size, and authentic taste, and sold for a good price. "These days the retail price is 5.2 yuan per jin, and many hot pot restaurant owners have established supply relationships with me, so there is no worry about sales." Li Yijuan said that by selling mushrooms she paid off her debts to relatives and friends. Next, she plans to base herself on the market, accurately grasp the best time to bring each variety to market, and ensure maximum benefits. (Text/Photo by Correspondent Li Dayuan)