How an Odisha professor is turning banana stems and cardboard into mushrooms

Sambalpur, Odisha: Discarded banana stems and cardboard are being turned into a low-cost mushroom-growing medium at Gangadhar Meher University, offering farmers a potential source of additional income.

Professor Susanta Kumar Das, a physics professor with an interest in agriculture, has developed and promoted the method. Banana stems are cut into small pieces, soaked in lime water for 24 hours and layered with cardboard and gram flour before mushroom spawn is added.

According to Professor Das, mycelium begins to appear in about 10 days, with mushrooms ready for production in around 20 days. Students and farmers who have trained in the technique say it requires less space and investment than conventional methods.

The approach also makes use of banana stems that would otherwise be discarded. Farmer Kshirod Rana said he has been using the method after learning it from Professor Das and found that each stem can potentially generate additional income.

Professor Das has so far provided free training to more than 500 students and farmers, encouraging the use of agricultural waste for mushroom cultivation and income generation.