Mushroom Roots: New Resource for Construction, Fashion

As a new source for construction and fashion materials, manufacturers are turning to mushroom roots.

The mushroom industry is experiencing a surge in popularity. This is evident from the success of Netflix's Fantastic Fungi and numerous clinical trials investigating the use of hallucinogenic species for depression treatment.

But mycelium, the mushroom's root structure, is one component of fungi that companies are now particularly utilizing.

Biohm's Construction Panels from Mushroom Roots

Mycelium is grown on a large scale by Biohm, a London-based biomanufacturing company, using feedstocks like food scraps and sawdust to produce products for the construction sector, such as insulation panels, which can be used instead of its plastic predecesors.

Oksana Bondar, the director of design at Biohm, explains that the company is focused on resolving global issues, and the construction sector is one of the biggest in terms of its effects on the environment and ecosystem.

They investigated waste streams, material types, and the structure of buildings in greater detail, and discovered that insulation is one of the most important commodities. The plan was to find a natural way to solve one of the problems.

Mycelium is harvested by Biohm after it has grown over a period of weeks, dried, and compressed into brick-like panels.

According to Bondar, the mushroom root panels can be recycled, can be converted into feedstock, are safe for composting, are pH-neutral and entirely natural, and can be used to fertilize the soil.

Within the next few years, mycelium thermal insulation is anticipated to be installed in homes, workplaces, and public spaces throughout the UK and Europe, according to a Biohm spokeswoman.

MycoWorks' Mushroom Root Leather

Mycelium is being grown in San Francisco by a business called MycoWorks to create "Reishi," a leather substitute. These days, anything from wallets to hats, handbags, and bowls is made using this material.

Mycelium-grown Reishi, according to Sophia Wang, co-founder of MycoWorks, is a remarkable material and the first leather substitute of its kind that doesn't contain plastic as a primary component. Low carbon emissions are achieved by growing it with three organic materials: water, sawdust, and mycelium.

The luxury goods industry, she continues, is actually garnering the most attention in the company's efforts. MycoWorks has already worked with hatmaker Nick Fouquet and Hermes to produce a handbag that uses some of their mycelia, according to The Guardian.

To investigate using mycelium in automobile interiors, MycoWorks is also collaborating with General Motors.

Wang claims that the business "coaxes" mycelium to develop into a substantial brick. The top layer of this is peeled off and can be colored or tanned like leather because it is said to resemble a sheet of animal leather.

Reishi, according to Wang, is currently priced similarly to high-end leather. She does, however, hope that the price will decrease as the company starts producing on a much larger scale.

The company has raised $125 million to build a new facility that will enable it to ramp up production from thousands of sheets per year to millions in order to achieve this growth. Their product is slated to debut in South Carolina by the end of the year, BBC News reports.

Mycelium, the Company

A company by the name of Mycelium specializes in using organic remedies that have existed for millions of years to solve the most pressing environmental issues. A team of experts in biotechnology, manufacturing technology, production, and marketing makes up the company. They want to combine science, farming, and manufacturing to spread mycelium technology to everyone.

They currently offer insulation panels, acoustic insulation boards, and planter pots.

According to Mycelium, the biomaterial produced by the process of mushroom growth on plant residues eventually yields a wholly natural composite material that meets standard new specifications. The biomaterial develops a complex network of chitin fibers that cross each other and the plant's own fibers as it grows.