The Avondale-based American Mushroom Institute has found record-high consumer demand for fresh mushrooms in early 2018, as the tasty fungus continues to dominate food-trend lists.

The trade association said that mushrooms sales had a 9.7 percent bump in January. The demand is so high that it’s outpacing the speed with which mushroom growers can respond.

“Demand has been steadily growing across all categories – foodservice, retail, and industrial – for several years,” said Mark Lang, professor of Food Marketing at Saint Joseph’s University.

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A long-term expansion in production will require sizable capital expenditure on new buildings and infrastructure, as well as time. This is why growers are focusing their short-term efforts on increasing their current growing capacity.

But the main issue the industry is facing right now is a shortage of labor. Growing mushrooms is very labor-intensive, as each mushroom has to be picked by hand.

Another challenge in meeting the surging demand is the weather. Even though mushrooms are grown in climate-controlled buildings, the composting process takes place outside. This means it’s being affected by the ongoing cold temperatures and wet conditions.

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