Mushroom Blue

Mushroom Blue is a company on a mission to tackle Kenya’s food insecurity, environmental challenges and unemployment—all in one blow. The young company will use agricultural waste to grow mushrooms for the local market following a no-fuss model that is far-removed from the conventional, highly technical methods. Mushroom Blue was founded in October 2012 by Nyawira Gitaka and Mbachia Ng’ethe, two months after they graduated from the University of Nairobi. “This is our passion. The business model responds to our needs as entrepreneurs, the community’s needs as well as those of the environment,” said Mr Ng’ethe. The company’s growth mirrors that of the Climate Innovation Center (CIC) having been accepted into the incubation programme in October 2012. CIC has been guiding Mushroom Blue through the regulatory concerns of its early days. With resources from the incubation center, Mushroom Blue has been able to carry out extensive research on best practices in mushroom farming. The company has also been introduced to key experts in the technology sector who will continue to provide insight throughout the Mushroom Blue’s various development phases. “We found out about CIC right at the inception of the company. CIC has been godsend. It would have been impossible to make the kind of progress we have already made with their support,” said Ms Gitaka. Mushrooms have the potential to help address acute hunger in Kenya. They contain high protein content, can grow under very low moisture conditions, have a fast maturity rate and can be grown even in urban areas. However, the highly technical nature of conventional mushroom farming has locked out most small scale farmers from the crop. Mushroom Blue will address the challenges that farmers venturing into mushroom farming face by providing them with technical support and training. The company will purchase the crop from farmers at competitive prices.