As ever the year flew past with ever increasing velocity - a year of upheaval and tumult on the world stage - yet things in the mushroom sector seemed to progress at a steady pace.
January 2025 saw sterling floating around the €1.20 per pound zone - contrast with today floating around the €1.15 mark. Oil prices similarly moved over the year to a lower benchmark - oil was at $79 a barrel this time last year but has moved toward the $60 a barrel for Brent Crude over the year. The trend toward glut of supply in the oil markets is apparently set to continue this year.
Irish mushroom exports were on the rise according to the latest Boad Bia export performance and prospects report. The adverse wet spell of weather had hit harvest performance in the farming sector in the UK and Ireland. The climate report was that 2024 was the hottest on record - 2025 seems to be giving it a run for its money. Mycelium insulation was making some news in the building world. Holyhead re-opened in the month after the storm damage wrought by Storm Darragh. We didn’t know it as yet but we had one of the strongest storms ever to hit Ireland on its way - when Storm Éowyn hit Ireland in late January the destruction was mighty. A trail of trees down throughout the country and buildings damaged. Let’s hope we see nothing like that this year.
Whipping into February and the reports of damage from Storm Éowyn were coming in thick and fast. Joe Reilly in Westmeath said “we couldn’t believe the damage”, after 40 years in the business they’d never experienced anything like it.
There were calls for financial support for the horticulture sector which was hard hit by the storm across the whole island of Ireland.
Dry Bubble was the subject of some fresh research from Dr Joy Clarke at Teagasc - well worth looking at. Bird control zones were also in operation at this time last year due to avian influenza - it’s the disease that seems to keep giving. Northern Irish growers were seeking some clarity on the post-Brexit aid scheme replacement according to the chair of the NIMGA John McArdle. Support for Northern growers who face unique challenges in the post-Brexit trading environment is as crucial as ever.
Big news of zombie spiders found in caves in the Fermanagh/ Cavan region, lit up the newswires globally last February. The photos were discombobulating and for anyone with arachnophobia ‘twas like their worst nightmare come true. The fungus involved was reminiscent of the cordyceps fungus which afflicts ants out in the Himalayas. Phorid fly infestation in Pennsylvania was investigated in one article - the scene out there is hopefully something that will not be replicated here. There was an item too on the benefits of ergothioneine, with research linking it to better health and longer life. It is the mushroom compound that has a lot going for it!
Moseying into March there was some sad news with the death of Richard Fortey being announced. His last book Close Encounters of the Fungal Kind is surely a stock for any mycophile’s bookshelves, and his BBC documentary on The Secret Life of Mushrooms is a must to see.
On the industry front there was a mega investment by Walsh Mushrooms at its Evesham site in Worcestershire - with a £10 million state of the art growing facility announced. Tariffs and trade were in the forefront of the news and minds of many as new Brexit rules were coming into force, never mind the global tariffs threatened by the US. Stalker was asking what the buzzing sound was - not a fly infestation, but the noise of buzz saws cutting up all the felled trees and branches from the big storm. Smithy Mushrooms had a big solar makeover. Stalker notes talk of mushroom houses down Monaghan way clad in solar panels - it’s all the rage!
Edible fungi to help with diabetes was another item - as ever these claims need investigating - but the claim is that complex polysaccharides in mushrooms modulate the immune system and can reduce insulin resistance. All to the good for sure.
Approaching April research emanating from Teagasc was showing how viruses can help the fight against mushroom pathogens. The NIMGA was updating the local ministers at the NIO on the challenges facing the local mushroom industry - the extension of the Fruit& Veg Aid Scheme was welcomed also. Beta glucans, which mushrooms abound in, were investigated as something which might protect against flu - it is already known to boost immunity but could also be helpful in fighting off a viral attack. Good to know, facing into the ‘superflu’ season this winter. There was a new book launched by Paul Stamets - Psilocybin Mushrooms in Their Natural Habitat - a magical read Stalker has heard. In environmental news, there was a warning that some fungi, a third of 1300 species which were assessed, were in danger of being lost - i.e. going extinct. A profoundly worrying development.
The amaopostia stiptica was noted as the most bitter tasting substance on Earth - that’s one for the books! There was a report on a mushroom forager being collared by the fungi fuzz - it all seemed like a bit of an overreaction. Woodland Trust guidelines on foraging say minimise damage and seek permission from landowner and only take what you plan to consume - all pretty sensible really. If a site is an SSSI foraging is not permitted.
And there was a sequel to that story just this month (it is elsewhere in this issue). Tesco had an artistic mushroom gracing its promotions this month. And an Aussie company was attempting to be the first to grow a crop of mushrooms in space. Stalker has yet to hear how that panned out?
Into May and the big news was an agri-food deal agreed between the UK and the EU. There was hope that the deal would ease some of the post Brexit frictions that had arisen in agri-food matters between Ireland and GB. There was news of cobots and popstar mushrooms and of course the ongoing mushroom murder trial down under. The Balmoral Show was getting bigger and better than ever before, and it was declared both the sunniest and driest spring in the UK by the Met Office.
Food price inflation was a theme of the month and the year - as the year ended inflationary pressures on households especially in the grocery department was still a hot issue. In the mushroom world Lion’s Mane was having it's stellar moment - with claims of all sorts of benefits from the Hericium Erinaceus fungus. From heart health to memory boosting abilities it was the mushroom of the moment.
Biodegradable batteries made from mushrooms by scientists in Switzerland at EMPA were making headlines worldwide. Meanwhile more locally the protests at the Northway site in Tyrone were gaining some traction in the media. Mushroom Machine were focussed on weighing accuracy, while the threat of aspergillus around the world was highlighted also. In lighter news from Australia ghost mushrooms - i.e fluorescent glow in the dark species - were being marvelled at in New South Wales. Finally Jeremy Clarkson was making mushrooms matter in his new Clarkson’s Farm Amazon series.
Joyful June arrived with prognostications on a hot summer to come - they weren't wrong the boffins at the Met Office. They reckoned that a hot summer was twice as likely following the sunniest spring. Mushroom Machine launched a MushStats app which hooked up to the gamechanger machine and gives growers all the stats they need, at their fingertips quite literally. May saw the Avian Influenza Prevention Zone lifted in the North - the window on bird flu prevention seems to be ever expanding.
Mushrooms appeared in an article on foods to eat to beat inflammation - that seemed like good PR for the fresh produce. There was big money being invested in Canada in the ag-tech sector. Functional drinks containing mushroom derivatives seemed to be the order of the day. Used to be the function of a drink was to slake thirst and maybe get a bit tiddly - now it's to sharpen focus and rejuvenate the skin!
There was a report on the ‘dark taxa of mysterious fungi in the underground ecosystems of the Earth. It tied in nicely with the story on innovative mushroom coffins made in The Netherlands - so in demand they were going global. There was also a piece on the versatility of fungi as a living material, from compost bags to batteries, from computer motherboards to building materials - mushrooms are veritably magic.
According to the A.I. “Irish government support: While originally from mid-2023, ongoing investment schemes for the Irish mushroom sector focusing on energy efficiency, automation, and peat replacement remained relevant to 2025 strategic planning.” Does one put AI generated content in quotation marks? Stalker doesn’t know.
July duly arrived and the summer proper got underway. There was a new Royal Mail stamp collection honouring the country’s mushroom species - Stalker hasn’t spotted any letters with the stamps on them mind you. The Carbon Garden at Kew was making the news as was the straw incorporation measure in Ireland. The IFA said that the SIM will lead to a loss of jobs in the mushroom sector. There were calls on the department to revise the SIM to exclude wheat straw, a vital component for compost making in the mushroom sector.
According to AI;” Sustainability emphasis: Sector attention turned increasingly to reducing environmental impact, with peat-free casing and renewable energy use becoming priorities for growers across Ireland and Europe.”
DAERA in the North got the green light for legislation to support local fruit and veg growers - basically supporting Producer Organisations to undertake a new three year operational programme to provide some certainty to the sectors involved.
Grocery prices were still accelerating in both the UK and Ireland. The EPA down South was investigating the illegal extraction of peat. The hot weather was forcing English farmers into a record early harvest season as the mercury hit nearly 30 C in Ireland. This July was the most sustained summer month, with no notion of a St Swithin’s day wash out.
Advancing into August fair the weather was maintaining the hot sunny aspect of the summer. There was more on the EPA report on the catastrophic damage caused by illegal peat extraction in Ireland. Investment in automation was continuing apace with $25 million investment in 4AG robotics in Canada - the future is coming at an ever increasing pace!
Mushroom Machine were signposting their range of helpful videos on their website covering all sorts of interesting topics. New words like delulu and skibidi were highlighted - there’s more new words every year than you could shake a stick at.
FFP were exhibiting with Unigreen at the Tullamore show. And the growing shortage of labour in the mushroom sector in the North was raised at the highest levels of local government.
Having the AI review the year it identified two major aspects in August. There was the issue of labour challenges: “Constraints due to labour shortages and rising costs were influencing operational decisions across Europe, including Ireland’s mushroom harvesting sector.”
And EU regulation was highlighted - Peat bans and sustainability regulations were discussed as coming pressures on growers.
Meanwhile AI was causing Stalker some headaches - are we talking artificial intelligence, or artificial insemination, or Avian Influenza, or even Actual Irishwoman/man - take your pick.
Sloping gently into September with the beautiful sunny summer in the rearview mirror there were some queries raised on the claims made for the superstar mushroom of the year the Lion’s Mane. The ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) challenged some of the claims made for supporting cognitive function and memory. Deemed safe, the mushrooms may not convey the perceived health benefits. Good to know. Good to retain scepticism.
The ongoing theme of the year on grocery inflation came with a new metric, that each of us have our very own personal inflation rate. Go figure! Or don’t it might take too long. Basically if you were buying a lot of dairy products, you were in the high inflation category. No-one needed an economist to work that out for them.
A.I reckoned that :“ Industry transformation discussions were happening - with Irish mushroom growers engaged with robotics trials and automation, recognizing long-term shifts from traditional harvesting to
mechanized systems.”
Ecovative was sold off its Netherlands based subsidiary to the Scealta Mushrooms Klerken family.
Mushrooms were playing music in Manchester - madchester!
Truffles were being harvested on the Isle of Bute - the first commercial harvest in the UK apparently.
Northway Mushrooms was rebranded as Gaelgro Co-Operative.
And a scientific study found that psilocin, a metabolite of psilocybin, increased the lifespan of human skin and lung cells - the new fountain of youth?
There was also a $300,000 grant from NASA for research into mushrooms - above and beyond one might exclaim!
October the dull arrived - the month was the dullest in a century in Northern Ireland, with just 41 percent of the average sunshine for the month recorded. With reports of a bountiful mushroom season around the country coming in, there was also talk of a nationwide waxcap survey in the UK - using citizen science to record the wonder of nature.
The Dutch Mushroom Days date for 2026 was announced - slated for April 22nd to 24th at the usual venue.
England reportedly had it's second worst ever harvest season after the hottest summer on record, and also the driest since the year 1893.
Bord Bia appointed a new UK manager - Conor O’Sullivan. It’ll no doubt be interesting to hear the new man’s view on the state of Irish food exports to the UK. The Mushroom Council in the US was launching another new initiative themes on “It’s not magic it’s mushrooms” - targeted at Gen z and millennials - so that’s on digital, social media and streaming channels.
There was new research on the timelines involved in fungal evolution on planet Earth - the evidence seems to be pushing fungal emergence back hundreds of millions of years. Interesting stuff.
The age old question of whether to wash mushrooms or not popped up again. Mushroom Machine were profiling their bank of knowledge articles for the mushroom sector, mostly in video format on their website. And there was news of AI in the sector, especially tied in with robotic picking software and actions. Turning the AI to look at and review the sector over the year it threw up the following:
“Global showcase - at Anuga 2025 (Cologne), mushroom producers highlighted innovation in hybrid foods and premium varieties, reflecting broader global market trends.”
Noodling into November the big news was of Codd Mushrooms garnering awards in the national family business awards.There was a report on AI revolutionising mushroom harvesting.
There was also news from a new EU news channel called Mushroom Growing News. Paul Stamets was addressing the UN on the power of mushroom mycelium - that would have been interesting to hear on the subject of the immune benefits of turkey tail and agarikon. In the US, Monterey Mushrooms was noting that it had achieved certification for its organic spent mushroom compost. There was news also of Leo’s Boys out pulling in a tug o’ war competition in the US - the thought of it cast Stalker’s mind back at least four decades!
There were warnings on bird flu and human flu, with biocontainment protocols coming into operation on both sides of the border to limit the spread of the former.
Sterling was hitting a nadir for the year at €1.13 for one pound sterling. And mushrooms were appearing on the plate of the healthier version of the full English or Ulster Fry breakfast - they’re always a must!
In the AI view of the month: “ advances in computer vision and AI for mushroom cultivation (e.g.,synthetic image datasets for mushroom segmentation) highlighted how technology is entering even precision agriculture and academic research.”
Decidedly December rolled in to complete the year with news of Lion’s Mane lattes and rare date waxcaps leading the way.
The novel farm experiment that was held in the year by Tiernaneill Mushrooms in conjunction with Teagasc to advance research into new casing materials was mentioned. It’s available to view on YouTube and is well worth looking up. There was a brief cold snap but generally the weather was milder than the norm, with Storm Bram bringing some strongish winds.
Bluetongue was confirmed on farm in the North, which sent alarm bells ringing across agri circles on the whole island of Ireland. Is it a case of climate change bringing new disease?
The midge vector is not in doubt.
There was also fashion news - it seems the dawn of new materials made from non animal sources - like mushroom leather - may be less promising than at first thought.
2025 was on course to be the second hottest ever recorded, that’s another hot year to add to the growing concern on climate. It has been confirmed as the warmest and sunniest in the UK since records began!
There was an AI generated article on the commercial mushroom industry in Ireland included to show the power of AI in formulating such syntheses of material. Whether there were any “hallucinations” by the AI we shall see.
The meal of the month being pushed by supermarkets was Mushroom Wellington - you could buy it whole or buy the constituent ingredients to make - all good for mushroom demand for sure. However the uneasy feeling of the Beef Wellington meal infamously served down under lingered in the mind.
The AI December end-of-year recap concluded thus: “The global mushroom industry continues growing due to culinary demand, functional foods, sustainability drivers, and cutting-edge cultivation tech.
Forecasts suggest steady CAGR (compound annual growth rate) through the rest of the decade.”
One supposes that that is a positive note to end the review on.
Hopefully 2026 will be a more stable year all round (don’t bet on it - Ed.).
