Oyster mushrooms 'upgraded' to OCOP product

From a household-based model, the oyster mushroom 'Ms. Sinh' in Dinh Lap commune has become a 3-star OCOP product, opening up sustainable livelihood opportunities and creating jobs for local people.

The arduous journey from the very first mushroom spawn

Late in the afternoon, the warm yellow light from Mrs. Sai Thi Sinh's small mushroom farm in Binh Chuong village, Dinh Lap commune, still shone onto the veranda. The space was warm and fragrant with the scent of wood. Rows of pristine white mushroom substrate hung neatly, layers of plump, round mushroom caps spreading wide. Mrs. Sinh nimbly harvested each cluster of mushrooms, her hands skilled and her eyes calm, as if she had experienced all the hardships of the profession.

Looking at her mushroom farm today, it's hard to believe she failed right from the start. "Mushroom farming is very risky, my dear, nothing is easy right away. You have to be persistent to succeed; there's no easy path," she recalled.

Ms. Sinh packs each bag of freshly picked oyster mushrooms – a familiar task she's been involved in for many years. Photo: Hoang Nghia.

She started growing mushrooms in 2016, when no one in the village had taken up the trade. In the first batch, thousands of mushroom bags were ruined by white mold due to the humid weather and lack of proper techniques. She lost everything but didn't give up; she told herself she had to learn how to do it.

"If no one taught me, I had to learn on my own," she recalled about the days she spent in Bac Giang (formerly) observing each stage of professional mushroom cultivation, such as processing the substrate, maintaining humidity, controlling light, and detecting diseases.

She applied what she learned. From a few temporary sheds, she expanded and upgraded it into a 1,200m² mushroom cultivation workshop with fixed, sealed rooms where she controlled the temperature and humidity using her accumulated experience over many years. Each cycle, she maintained around 4,000-5,000 mushroom bags, sometimes reaching up to 15,000 bags.

Thanks to a change in mindset, the mushroom farming model gradually stabilized. The mushroom spawn that once discouraged her has now become a stable source of livelihood for the whole family.

"Co Sinh" oyster mushrooms reach OCOP 3-star rating.

Every day, Mrs. Sinh opens the workshop to check the humidity, adjust the misting nozzles, and observe how each mushroom substrate "breathes." In the enclosed space, moisture clings to each strand of substrate hanging along the walls. She walks slowly through each row, carefully observing to ensure that the mushrooms are growing evenly. The job isn't as physically demanding as farming, but it requires meticulous attention to detail, especially during sudden weather changes.

Ms. Sinh said that the annual yield usually reaches 7-10 tons, depending on the weather. White or brown oyster mushrooms are sold at 30,000-40,000 VND/kg, and in good years, her family earns over 200 million VND. Besides providing income for her family, the mushroom farm also creates jobs for people in the surrounding area. "Sometimes I hire 4-5 people, at peak times up to ten. It's just to help the locals earn some extra income," she said.

Once production stabilized, she perfected the labeling, barcodes, and traceability records. Thanks to the support of the local government and relevant departments, in 2024, "Ms. Sinh's" oyster mushroom product was recognized as a 3-star OCOP product. This was a turning point for a family that had previously experimented on their own and failed in their first harvest.

Perseverance leads to a better tomorrow.

According to Mr. Nguyen Chien Hiep, Chairman of the People's Committee of Dinh Lap commune, Ms. Sinh's mushroom farming model is stable and effective. She is the first household to cultivate mushrooms on a large scale in the locality, and her products are sold both within the commune and in many external markets.

The commune is focusing on supporting the expansion of the model, linking it with product promotion and brand strengthening in the market. "If households expand production, the commune will continue to support promotion and create conditions for the model to develop better," Mr. Hiep said.

At Ms. Sinh's facility, the mushroom bags are regularly inspected to ensure quality before being released to the market. Photo: Hoang Nghia.

For her part, Ms. Sinh is also planning to upgrade her facilities to expand production in the near future. She processes the mushroom residue after harvesting into organic fertilizer, saving costs and generating additional income.

In the midst of the pristine white mushroom farm, where rows of mushroom substrates hang like a garden growing in the humidity and warm yellow light, Mrs. Sinh slowly walks along the narrow paths. Each step seems to carry the weight of a decade of accumulated experience, failures, crop failures due to weather, and nights spent adjusting the humidity to save the substrate.

Her journey, from initial failure, her determination to learn a trade, her self-taught efforts in building each breeding room, to achieving OCOP 3-star certification, is a testament to the resilience of people in the highlands. It also clearly demonstrates that a small-scale model, if built with dedication, knowledge, and perseverance, can still become an effective livelihood.

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/nam-so-len-doi-thanh-san-pham-ocop-d784096.html