Recent advances on environmentally sustainable valorization of spent mushroom substrate: A review

Abstract

Commercial cultivation of edible mushrooms utilizes a large amount of lignocellulosic material as a substrate. After harvest, the leftover substrate, referred to as a spent mushroom substrate (SMS), largely remains biochemically unaltered. In light of the global rise in the number of edible mushroom production facilities, it is pertinent to sustainably manage the by‐products of the mushroom production process, particularly SMS. Following the principles of the circular economy, SMS has shown potential for a variety of applications: SMS can be used as substrate for a new cycle of mushroom cultivation or as animal feed, fertilizer, soil amendment, bioremediation agent or a substrate for renewable energy production such as biogas, bioethanol, biohydrogen, solid biofuel, bio‐crude and bio‐oil. This article summarizes the current state of knowledge in various applications, highlights recent developments in the field, discusses potential barriers and offers suggestions for the long‐term growth of the mushroom industry worldwide.

Valorization of Spent Mushroom Substrate: Establishing the Foundation for Waste-Free Production

“…Traditionally, SMS has been treated as waste, leading to environmental problems [4], despite its richness in organic matter and mineral micronutrients. Over the past decade, overcoming this challenge has become increasingly important to the mushroom production industry, emerging a new line of research aimed at identifying the most environmentally and economically sustainable methods for its reuse [5][6][7][8].…”