As people seek healthy new food options, the demand for gourmet mushrooms is increasing. Fresh button mushrooms including cremini and portobello are still very popular but oyster mushrooms and exotics like lion’s mane are increasing in popularity. Luckily Amanda Evans of Mermaid Mushrooms is growing these in a warehouse in Kealakekua and offering them to enthusiasts around Hawaii Island.
For Amanda this was simply turning a hobby into a business. In her teens, Amanda started growing mushrooms in her bedroom closet in Arizona. In 2917 she left and moved to Hawaii. Within a year she was awarded a financial settlement from a car accident which motivated her to launch a business growing mushrooms.
She started searching for a name for her business. She wanted something fun and cross-cultural, that had some island style. Since she had often been described as a mermaid, that seemed like a good name to use. She also liked the alliteration of Mermaid Mushrooms. Her business now had a name.
In 2020 she entered her business plan in the HI Plan competition. After many very intense rounds of shark tank presentations, she came away with the grand prize. She invested the prize money in growing her business and started selling her mushrooms wholesale to distributors.
By late 2020 she was selling mushrooms at local Farmer’s markets as well as to stores and restaurants. Then in 2021, Amanda received a capital investment and was able to move her mushroom growing operation into a 4000 square foot warehouse in Kealakekua.
After the birth of her first child in 2022, she scaled down her business temporarily. She then applied for and received financing from USDA. This made it possible to fund her operations expenses and to scale up Mermaid Mushrooms to full production.
Amanda is currently growing four kinds of oyster mushrooms as well as lion’s mane in her warehouse. She plans to add shiitake and turkey tail mushrooms later this year. Her mushrooms are grown in the warehouse in an innovative vertical farming style with grow bags on custom-built wooden shelves that are ten feet tall. Mermaid Mushrooms can currently produce over 1000 pounds per week of fresh gourmet mushrooms for an ever-expanding market. With full production happening, Amanda will be seeking more wholesale outlets in the near future
When I asked about her growing medium, she explained, “These mushrooms are wood lovers. They grow best in a medium that includes hardwood sawdust.”
Her medium contains hardwood pellets mixed with soybean hulls or bran and oat grain. She also sources hardwood waste from local woodworkers as part of her mix.
With help from the Hawaii Department of Agriculture, she is able to keep her species pure. To inoculate her substrate and start the growth of mushrooms, she purchases live mycelial cultures from trusted culture banks and imports them through the approval process at Hawaii DOA.
When I asked how soon she can harvest after inoculation, she reported that fruiting takes place very quickly. Depending on the species, she can harvest her first flush of 2 to 3 pounds in about a week. Two weeks later she can harvest a second flush. At that point she can sell the remaining contents of her grow bags as mushroom compost to gardeners and farmers. Mushroom compost can be used simply as a soil amendment but also has a variety of uses in vermiculture and bioremediation.
The increasing popularity of oyster mushrooms is partly a result of consumers’ search for healthier, plant-based ingredients. They are known for their immune boosting and anti-inflammatory properties and are low in calories while high in protein and fiber as well as several vitamins and minerals. They have a mild and delicate flavor that can enhance soups or stews as well as pasta sauces and stir fries. They can be used in almost any recipe that calls for mushrooms.
Each of the oyster mushrooms Amanda grows has distinctive features. The pink oyster is the most vibrant and has a denser cap, giving it a ham-like texture. It has a slight seafood taste and smell and can be cooked to taste like bacon. The blue oyster is very versatile. It has a smooth texture and mild taste but readily absorbs flavors of other ingredients. The Princess Pearl Oyster has the smallest cap size but grows into very large clusters. This is the most delicate of the oysters and has a “melt in your mouth” texture. She has recently added a variant of king oyster called Black Pearl King. Like a king oyster it is prized for the meaty stem and it also has a beautiful cap. All of these mushrooms can be used in any mushroom recipe.
Lion’s mane mushroom has always been grown at Mermaid Mushrooms. Amanda describes it as a delicious mushroom that she calls the “white meat mushroom”. It can be used as a substitute for crab meat, lobster, or chicken depending on the preparation technique. This mushroom has also been used for centuries in Chinese medicine. Recent studies suggest that lion’s mane may have a role in preventing and treating cognitive decline. Amanda is currently creating locally grown medicinal powders and tinctures from this mushroom which you can see on her website
At her booth at the Keauhou Farmer’s Market on Saturdays and the Na’alehu Farmers Market on Wednesdays, Amanda is cooking and selling what she calls the ‘Brain Burger.’ The sandwich contains no meat and can be made vegan. It is simply thickly sliced lion’s mane mushroom with traditional burger toppings on a sweet bread bun. Other hot sandwiches with oyster mushrooms as well as mushroom tacos, mushroom quiche and ready-to-eat mushroom based foods are also available. Of course, her fresh mushrooms and several other products can be found at her booths.
When asked what her favorite mushroom was, Amanda quickly replied, “Though my taste sometimes changes, I guess I would say the Black Pearl Kings are my current favorite.”
She really likes its meaty, fleshy stem and mild nutty flavor and added, “My favorite way to prepare them is to sauté them in butter, and finish it off with shoyu, paprika, and pepper.”
If mushrooms and a toddler aren’t enough for Amanda to handle, she is also growing and selling microgreens. They, of course, go well with her mushrooms.
Amanda has had some helpers in her business. Her husband, Rick Evans, and her employees have offered support in all areas, from culturing and cultivating to packaging and selling the mushrooms. Long time employee, Katie Foote is Amanda’s trusted gourmet cultivation assistant. Over the years, many people in the community have supported Mermaid Mushrooms. Amanda offers special thanks to her Slow Money Lenders, Eric Bowman of Feed the Hunger Foundation, and the Farm Service Agency at the Big Island office of the USDA.
Amanda is currently selling to distributors like Adaptations and Honaunau Market who supply mushrooms directly to supermarkets like KTA and Safeway. She is hoping to start marketing on Oahu or other outer islands soon.
In the meantime, be sure to check out the mushrooms she’s growing and selling at her website: mermaidmushrooms.com and learn more about her and her business on her Instagram and Facebook sites. She can accept special orders on her website. Check it out.
Gardening events
Saturdays: “Work Day at Amy Greenwell Garden” from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Meet at the Garden Visitor Center across from the Manago Hotel in Captain Cook. Come with a mask and prepared to practice social distancing. Volunteers can help with garden maintenance and are invited to bring a brown bag lunch. Water and snacks provided. Visit the website www.amygreenwell.garden/get-involved/volunteer-1/ and sign up for the weekly email for more information on work days.
Wednesday, April 24: Occasional Invasive Mini Conference, from 9:30 a.m. on Zoom. Speaker Brittany Barker from Oregon State University, IPM Center. For more information or to register call Roshan Manandhar at 808-374-3477 or email roshanm@hawaii.edu.
Thursday, April 25 or Thursday, May 16: “Respirator Training and Use” from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at UH CTAHR Extension Office in Kealakekua or online for respirator use training. From 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. there will be a free medical evaluation and respirator fit test (in person in Kona by appointment only). You must register to receive information on medical evaluations and respirator fit testing. Register by calling 808-322-0164 or at https://bit.ly/3TJLlei
Tuesdays: Coffee related webinars with live Q&A with the presenters, (now through April 30) starting at noon. Hosted at the Kona Extension YouTube account. Register at https://www.hawaiicoffeeed.com/coffeewebinars.html.
March-April: Live Webinars by Hawaii Small Business Development Center. Go to ‘Events and Workshops’ at hisbdc.org for more information and to register for the following. Cost is $15.
April 24 – “Analyzing Financial Statements – focus on Balance Sheet”
May 8 – “Analyzing Financial Statements – focus on Income Statement”
Wednesdays – May 29 to August 3 (10 weeks): Ag Orchard Cohort, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. (online), Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Oahu orchards. Cost is $200. Learn how to plan, plant and manage a productive commercial orchard. Contact gofarmhawaii.org for more information or to apply.
Wednesdays, June 12 – July 6 (4 weeks): Agrifloristry, 5:30-7:30 p.m. (online), Saturdays 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Various locations around Oahu, Cost is $150. Learn ways to plan your flower farm. Contact gofarmhawaii.org for more information or to apply.
Save the dates: Thursday, Friday and Saturday, July 18-20: “29th Annual Hawaii Coffee Association Conference” at the Ala Moana Hotel in Honolulu. Currently seeking lecturers and conference volunteers for the Trade Show and Statewide Cupping Competition. Check their website for more information at https://hawaiicoffeeassoc.org/Conference-2024.
Farmer direct markets
(Check websites for the latest hours and online markets)
Wednesday and Friday: Ho‘oulu Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Sheraton Kona Resort at Keauhou Bay
Saturday: Keauhou Farmers Market, 8 a.m. to noon at Keauhou Shopping Center; Kamuela Farmer’s Market, 7:30 a.m. to noon at Pukalani Stables; Waimea Town Market, 7:30 a.m. to noon at Parker School in central Waimea; Waimea Homestead Farmers Market, from 7:30 a.m. to noon at the Waimea middle and elementary school playground.
Sunday: Pure Kona Green Market, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. at Amy Greenwell Garden in Captain Cook; Hamakua Harvest, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Hwy 19 and Mamane Street in Honoka‘a.
Plant advice lines
Anytime: konamg@hawaii.edu
Tuesdays and Thursdays: 9 a.m. to noon at UH-CES in Kainaliu – 322-4893; or walk in Mon., Tues. and Fri: 9 a.m. to noon at UH CE.
Diana Duff is a plant adviser, educator and consultant living part time in Kailua-Kona.
