VALUE ADDED TO WILD EDIBLE MUSHROOMS THROUGH DEHYDRATION PROCESSES
Main Article Content
Keywords
Wild edible mushrooms, added value, rural agroindustry, central Mexico.
Abstract
Objective: To propose processes of dehydration of wild edible mushrooms as a strategy of adding value to the traditional harvesting of mycological resources, in forest areas of the State of Mexico.
Design, methodology and approximation: Simple case study method with a mixed approach, which integrates the perspective of a business plan.
Results: There are favorable conditions to add value to the collection of wild edible mushrooms, through dehydration processes. It is a low-cost initiative, based on local mycological diversity and ethnomicological knowledge, but requires the formation of new capacities to guarantee its technical and financial viability.
Limitations and implications: The study is exploratory in nature, so its relevance only helps to guide the processes of value aggregation in forest territories.
Findings and conclusions: The lack of innovation in mushrooms harvesting generates conditions of marginality among mushrooms pickers. Innovations such as dehydration can help control the unpredictability of the product, its conservation and its entry into new markets. This requires investment in equipment, human capital and greater knowledge of the market.
