Expert Tasks Youths On Mushroom Farming

The Managing Director
and Chief Executive Officer of Diplomat Farms, Chief Moore Chinda has called on youths in the state to engage in mushroom production to enable them to be self reliant.
Chinda who stated this while speaking to our correspondent in his office in Port Harcourt last Monday said mushroom production has been proved to be strenuous free when compared to the regular conventional farming.
He said with a maximum training of one month, trainees could be proficient in mushroom production with the opportunity of running their own farms.
According to him, when compared to other agric production, mushroom has been found to have a lot of advantages.
In mushroom production he highlighted further, there was no fear of lack of water or the menace of weed even as he said minimum space was needed to run a reasonable farm.
He further stated that mushrooms do not even need direct sunlight to enable them grow well as they were planted in a covered and ventilated environment.
While explaining the accruing benefits of mushroom production he also called on retired workers to take advantage of learning the process of mushroom production to enable them get busy even as they make extra money while on retirement.
He said the benefits of getting involved in mushroom production could not be over emphasised as it has served as a means of employment to the few who are already in the business.
The Diplomat boss however appealed to the Rivers State Government through the Ministry of Agriculture to evolve programmes that would enable the youths secure soft loans to go into mushroom production.
He said in developed countries, mushroom production was given priority even as he said most families in Russia and India were known names in mushroom production.
He said such development has helped in no small measure in improving the economic wellbeing of the people, especially for those who practice vegetarianism.
Describing the mushrooms as low in cholesterol, Chinda said experts have recommended them safe for diabetic patients with little or no side effect.
He said harvested mushroom could be cooked fresh or dried for preservation.