The Bazor Vegetable Group in Samdrup Jongkhar’s Gomdar Gewog has started cultivating oyster mushrooms to increase their income. The group is already known for vegetable farming in the gewog. They invested over Nu 100,000 to set up a dedicated facility. This initiative aims to boost their earnings and expand their market reach.
Ten members of the Bazor Vegetable Group supply vegetables worth Nu 25,000 to Bazor Primary School every month.
However, during school vacations, the group faces challenges as the market becomes flooded with vegetables from other farmers.
To address this, the group decided to diversify their products. They hired a private expert from Samsara Farming to train them in oyster mushroom cultivation and management.
“After supplying vegetables to Bazor Primary School, the market became flooded with the same produce, making it difficult to sell the remaining stock. So, we decided to venture into oyster mushroom cultivation, as only a few are doing it in Samdrup Jongkhar,” said Sonam Dorji, an accountant at Bazor Vegetable Group, Gomdar Gewog.
“We are cultivating mushrooms to boost our income. At the same time, we will also be providing nutritious food as mushrooms are more nutritious than other vegetables,” said Pema Deki, chairperson of Bazor Vegetable Group, Gomdar Gewog.
“I think mushrooms are more profitable compared to vegetables. Vegetable prices are lower, whereas mushrooms can be sold for Nu 200 to 300 per kilogram,” said Tendi Zangmo, a member of Bazor Vegetable Group, Gomdar Gewog.
“We supply vegetables to schools, which helps with the expenses of our school-going children. While we didn’t face much difficulty selling vegetables, we believe mushrooms will be more profitable as not many villagers are doing this,” said Lekden Pema, another member.
The Bazor vegetable group is preparing for their first oyster mushroom harvest in January. Their decision shows the importance of innovation and adaptability in farming.
Kinley Wangchuk. Samdrup Jongkhar
Edited by Sonam Pem
