Giving up a stable job with a good income in Cambodia, a bachelor of Agriculture and Forestry University Nguyen Chuong (33 years old) returns to his hometown to grow clean mushrooms, earning more than 1.5 billion VND/year. (1$=25,000 VND)
Desire to get rich in the homeland
After graduating from Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry, after graduating, Mr. Nguyen Chuong (33 years old, residing in Phong Luc Tay village, Dien Thang Nam commune, Dien Ban town, Quang Nam) was admitted to the Vietnam Rubber Company. Nam then was sent to Cambodia to work.
Sticking with the rubber tree in a foreign land for 5 years, after many nights of worrying, along with the urge to get rich in the homeland, Nguyen Chuong returned to his hometown to find a long-term direction for himself.
Although having specialized training at the university, determined to work in agriculture, but what to plant and what to raise children on the land that has only rice, corn, and beans… is a big concern. with Mr. Chuong.
Mr. Chuong sees an opportunity when his family member is seriously ill, is a vegetarian, and has difficulty ordering mushrooms with high nutritional content such as Ganoderma lucidum, abalone mushrooms, etc. from the southern provinces. sent out at a high price.
He suddenly thought, why not try to choose the direction with these mushrooms? But in Quang Nam, not many people grow Ganoderma lucidum, and abalone mushrooms, so it is difficult to find out and learn from the models.
Collect billions from the clean abalone mushroom farming model
At first, because he did not have much experience, Mr. Chuong planted mushrooms by manually method. The mushroom is slow to grow, the young “boss” fails many times. To gain more experience, he went online to find information and documents, learned how to grow mushrooms, read through books and newspapers, plus accumulated knowledge.
Up to now, Mr. Chuong has owned 3 mushroom nurseries with an area of more than 1,000m2.
According to Mr. Chuong, starting a business with an agricultural model is not easy. The results obtained must be exchanged through time and effort than people. After many failures, he persisted in learning from the beginning, correcting where he was wrong, and gradually gaining experience.
“Sometimes, when I’m tired, my assets and investment efforts keep wearing my hat, but I never thought of giving up. Starting a business is not easy, but going for a long time must have perseverance, determination, always make efforts to learn to gradually improve. Besides, you must have a sharp mind and grasp the market…”, Mr. Nguyen Chuong confided.
Revenue 1.5 billion VND/year
Sharing his experience of growing mushrooms, Mr. Nguyen Chuong said that abalone mushrooms are a clean, high-fiber and protein-rich food that is popular with many people.
However, this fungus requires very strict production, and must follow a closed process so that no insects from outside enter the mushroom farm. Moreover, this fungus is very easy to be eaten by pests, but no pesticides are used to ensure the product is clean.
At the raw material stage, it is recommended to choose sawdust from rubber trees mixed with lime to kill bacteria and ensure the humidity reaches 70-80%. The autoclave must be sterilized at 100⁰C. The tissue culture area must meet standards with airtight requirements and have equipment to destroy wild fungal spores. The area for incubation and cultivation must be well-ventilated, the temperature in the farm is always kept at 25-30⁰C.
According to Mr. Chuong’s experience of making mushrooms with less space, instead of making shelves, he used ropes suspended from the ceiling, each rope hung more than 20 bags of seed embryos, watered 3-4 times a day.
To ensure a stable output with no reduction in output, Mr. Chuong arranged to rotate all 3 farms so that they could harvest all year round. Mushrooms from incubation to transplanting take 70-90 days, harvesting time is 4 months, selling price is about 50,000 VND/kg. The main consumption markets are wholesale markets in Da Nang and Quang Nam cities.
“A clean environment is a must for this farming model. The water used for irrigating the mushrooms must be clean. No pesticides are used… All processes are strictly monitored, in order to produce mushrooms that reach the highest standards. The mushroom market is gradually saturated, now if you want to start a business, you have to think carefully and meticulously, “said Mr. Chuong.
In addition to producing and supplying abalone mushrooms, Mr. Chuong’s facility also produces mushroom embryos. Each month, the farm supplies about 30,000 mushroom embryos to the market. Besides, products from abalone mushrooms such as mushroom rolls, and natural mushroom snacks… are popular in the market.
The clean mushroom growing model helps Mr. Nguyen Chuong earn more than 1.5 billion VND/year (excluding expenses). After deducting costs, the profit is about 400 million VND/year. Simultaneously, mushroom farm creates jobs for more than 10 local workers, with an average income of 4-5 million VND/month. (1$=25,000 VND)
Mr. Nguyen Chuong has 2 products that meet the 3-star OCOP standard recognized by the Quang Nam Provincial People’s Committee in 2020, which are abalone mushroom rolls and abalone mushroom snacks.
Not only enriching himself, he is also ready to support those who want to start a business growing abalone mushrooms, ready to provide dedicated guidance on care techniques.
Mr. Nguyen Chuong’s mushroom farm is a model for local youth and neighboring areas, and students at universities to visit and learn from experience. Mr. Nguyen Chuong was awarded the Luong Dinh Cua Award in 2021 by the Central Youth Union.
Photo: Internet (vinlove.net)