Mushrooms Are Big Business In Chesco, As Grant Aids Ag Industry

AVONDALE, PA — Towns in southern Chester County are clearly America's mushroom capital, and the state this week made the Avondale-based American Mushroom Institute a recipient of funding to increase awareness of the importance of mushrooms in PA agriculture.

Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding today announced $300,000 in state matching funds awarded to 16 projects aimed at increasing consumer awareness of Pennsylvania agriculture products and market opportunities for agriculture producers.

"With so many appealing products produced in Pennsylvania, consumers don’t have to look far to find fresh, healthy choices close to home," Redding said.

According to the American Mushroom Insitute's 2018 annual report, in Pennsylvania, mushrooms are a $764 million industry here. Their total economic impact is $1.1 billion, supporting 8,600 jobs with $287 million in employee compensation. Nationally, the $1.6 billion industry has a total impact of $3.1 billion, and supports 21,000 jobs with $864 million in employee compensation, according to the American Mushroom Institute.

"When aware of the options, consumers are more likely to choose local products. Promoting the story behind the food is a compelling way to attract consumers to Pennsylvania products. Once they make that first purchase, it is natural for them to become repeat customers," Redding added.

The Pennsylvania Agricultural Product Promotion, Education, and Export Promotion Matching Grant is a program within the 2020-21 state budget. The Bureau of Market Development offers this grant to encourage and maximize the promotion of Pennsylvania-produced agricultural products.

Non-profit organizations based in 11 counties received matching funds for projects, many of which have a regional or statewide focus. The department prioritized projects aligned to COVID-19 recovery. Avondale and Kennett Square have had the two highest percentages of their populations test positive for COVID-19, among Chester County municipalities, each around 10 percent.

American Mushroom Institute, based in Avondale, received $40,000. The Mushroom Farmers of Pennsylvania’s Eating Better to Build Back Better program will focus on mushroom culinary properties and health benefits, including naturally occurring vitamin D. The program will promote mushroom contributions to soil health and carbon sequestration.

More than half of U.S. mushrooms come from the area around Kennett Square, which is so proud of its mushroom heritage it hosts a two-day mushroom festival each year in October to celebrate peak season and on New Year's Eve has been known to drop an 800-pound mushroom in lieu of a ball.

The national Mushroom Council declared April 16 the Day of the Mushroom, but in places like Avondale and Kennett Square, it's always Mushroom Day.

Year-round, Kennett Square restaurants are known for serving shiitake, oyster, maitake, pompom, pioppino, crimini mushrooms, as they feature the locally grown fungi on their menus plus a mushroom souvenir store dedicated to edible gifts and eccentric decor.

Much like sourdough starters and one-pan pasta, mushrooms are having a moment. Novice home chefs are getting more adventurous in the mushroom varieties they try — even using these tasty spores and sprouts to replace meat — and ambitious foodies are growing their own gardens with DIY kits.

Farm Manager Nina Berryman of Weaver’s Way Co-op said the best mushrooms grow in the Mushroom Capital of the World, Kennett Square, Avondale, and that area in southern Chester County.

Food and Beverage Director Daniel Daley of Letty’s Tavern in Kennett Square has created a full menu of items for the Day of the Mushroom, featuring an exotic array of mushroom features, including mushroom toasts, rried mushrooms, mushroom soup, and a mushroom Old Fashioned cocktail.