1. Beijing, China November 21-December 05 2007
REPUBLIC OF NAMIBIA
MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, WATER AND FORESTRY
Department of Agriculture –Research and Training (Plant production)
Promotion of Mushroom Cultivation in Namibia
By Lydia N. Horn
Prepared for the Seminar on Edible Fungi Application and Management for African Countries.
Beijing, China November 21-December

2. Mushroom Production in Namibia

3. Mushrooms in general are well known among Namibian farmers and are widely consumed in the northern regions during the rainy season
Although no formal scientific mushroom cultivation in Namibia has been attempted before the 90s
In 1999 the first funded project for mushroom was launched in Namibia working in collaboration with the University of Namibia
Awareness and training workshops started in 2003, where extension and research officers were trained

4. Later in 2003, the Ministry of Agriculture,Water and Forestry in collaboration with the Ministry of Commerce of China sent participants to the training on edible fungi held in Fuzhou City Fujian Province
Experience was gained and applied at home institution
A project on mushroom cultivation and promotion In Namibia was encouraged by the Division of Plant Production Research in the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry at the beginning of 2004

5. Why Mushrooms
mushrooms play a very important dietary role in human nutrition and health worldwide when used as a dietary supplement
On a dry weight basis, mushrooms are made up of about 30% protein (Oei 1996) and this protein is endowed with all the essential amino acids
Mushrooms are low in calories and carbohydrates, are almost cholesterol free and are high in vitamins and minerals, all of which serve as important essential requirements for human health (Chang and Miles 1997).

6. Contribution to livelihoods in Namibia
Idle for those who are unable to cultivate fields due to sick health (HIV/AIDS, TB and others)
Crop diversification

7. Preparing the mycelium for seed inoculation at the University of Namibia

8. Inoculation Box for on-farm demonstration

9. Spawning materials

10. Field crop residues & Substrate preparation at Omahenene Research Station

11. A group of Women monitoring the Substrate Steaming during training session

12. Inoculation of substrate in the laboratory and at the training workshop

13. Inoculation of substrate continues with Women group and with University of Namibia students

14. Ideal houses for mycelium and mushroom growth: Namibia

15. Mycelium development & fruiting bodies

16. Watering in the mushroom house

17. Mushroom house inside

18. Challenges facing mushroom production in Namibia
Dry weather conditions
Lack of sterilizing equipments
Unavailability/inaccessibility to mushroom strains that are suitable for Namibian environments
Lack of proper trained personnel in the field of mushroom production
Lack of know how on the conditions needed for mushroom growth
Lack of funding sources for the project experimentations

19. Harvesting and cooking
END