US Mushroom Sales Down 1 Percent, Value Down 3 Percent

According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, …

According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, sales of the 2005-06 U.S. mushroom crop are 843 million pounds, down 1 percent from both the 2004-05 and 2003-04 seasons. Value of sales for the 2005-06 U.S. mushroom crop is $881 million, down 3 percent from the previous season and 4 percent below the 2003-04 season. The number of growers, at 305, is up 9 from last season. The average price is $1.05 per pound, down 2 cents from 2004-05.

Sales reported by growers of Agaricus mushrooms for fresh market are 701 million pounds, up 1 percent from last season. Sales of Agaricus mushrooms for processing are 129 million pounds, 9 percent below last season. Value of sales for all Agaricus mushrooms totaled 841 million dollars, down 2 percent from the previous season and 4 percent below 2003-04.

Agaricus Mushrooms

Agaricus mushroom sales totalled 830 million pounds, down 1 percent from both the 2004-05 and 2003-04 seasons. Pennsylvania accounted for 59 percent of the total volume of sales. The value of the Agaricus crop was estimated at $841 million, down 2 percent from the 2004-05 season. Brown mushrooms, including Portabello and Crimini varieties, accounted for 117 million pounds, up 17 percent from last season and 21 percent higher than the 2003-04 crop year. Brown mushrooms accounted for 14 percent of the total Agaricus volume sold. The brown mushroom crop value of sales for the 2005-06 season is $152 million, 18 percent of the total Agaricus value.

The number of Agaricus growers in the U.S. totaled 119, up 1 from last season but down 6 from two seasons ago. Growers with sales exceeding 10 million pounds accounted for 66 percent of U.S. Agaricus production, or 548 million pounds.

The growing area is 27.7 million square feet, down 4 percent from the previous season and 11 percent below 2003-04. Total fillings are 140 million square feet, down 2 percent from last season and 4 percent below 2003-04. Yields averaged 5.92 pounds per square foot, up 1 percent from last season.

Producers received an average return of $5.99 per square foot, down 4 cents from last season and 1 cent below the 2003-04 season. U.S. fresh market production at 701 million pounds is up 1 percent from the previous season, while processed production, at 129 million pounds, is 9 percent below the previous season. Growers reported U.S. fresh market production at 84 percent of total sales volume with processed production making up the remaining 16 percent. Growers total filling intentions for the 2006-07 crop are down 3 percent from the 2005-06 crop.

Specialty mushrooms

Value of sales for commercially grown specialty mushrooms in 2005-06 is $41 million, down 13 percent from the 2004-05 season. The average price per pound received by growers, at $3.01, is down 8 cents from the previous season.
Sales of Shiitake mushrooms totalled 7.76 million pounds for the 2005-06 season, down 10 percent from the previous season. Price per pound received by growers, at $3.24, is down 1 cent from 2004-05. Sales volume of Oyster mushrooms, at 4.56 million pounds, is down 11 percent from the previous season. Price per pound received by growers, at $2.15, is down 20 cents from the previous season. Sales of exotic mushrooms, other than Shiitake or Oyster, are 1.19 million pounds, down 10 percent from last season. Price per pound received by growers, at $4.85, is down 5 cents from 2004-05.

Certified Organic Agaricus and Specialty Mushrooms

Growers sold 32.5 million pounds of mushrooms that were certified organic during the 2004-05 growing season, down 7 percent from 2004-05. Out of the 32.5 million pounds, 8.76 million pounds, or 27 percent of the total were sold as certified organic mushrooms, while the rest were sold without the certified organic label. This compares to 6.08 million pounds, or 17 percent sold as certified organic during the 2004-05 crop year.
Agaricus mushrooms accounted for 80 percent of the mushrooms sold as certified organic, while all specialty mushrooms made up the remainder. These certified organic sales represent 1 percent of the 2005-06 total mushroom sales. The number of certified organic mushroom growers totaled 33, down 2 from the previous season. These growers represent 11 percent of the 305 total mushroom producers.

Download the full NASS report here.