Mushroom growers have agreed to start a new group to represent their industry, at the recent AHDB mushroom conference.
It’s the first time since the demise of the Mushroom Growers Association in 2005 that growers in the category will have a formal group, despite being the UK’s second largest vegetable category.
The core aims of the group will be to guide the use of grower levies spent on R&D through the creation of an R&D strategy for the mushroom sector.
The group will also work with AHDB and members of the protected edibles panel to identify relevant and suitable R&D projects, and monitor feedback on the delivery of the projects.
Jack Ward, CEO of British Growers said: “The industry needs to raise the profile of the mushroom sector and build its credibility as a high-tech forward-looking industry making a positive and valued contribution to the UK food chain and the UK economy.”
The new mushroom group will also seek to create opportunities for knowledge exchange, setting up technical days, conferences and seminars to spread industry best practise.
