MycoLogic is a company based on a passion for fungi here in Aotearoa New Zealand. Whether its growing them for food or medicine, researching new species, or exploring the potentials of fungi in other realms such as detoxifying the environment or growing 'myco materials', our scope covers anything mushroom related. 

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Founded in 2017 by Barton Acres, MycoLogic is a continuation of a life-long journey that has been interwoven with fungi. First cultivating mushrooms at a hobby scale in the year 2000, Bart rapidly became obsessed with the fungal world, and foraging, identifying, eating and cultivating as many kinds of fungi as possible. A few years later, this hobby was turned into a business, and in partnership with a couple of good mates they established an urban farm in Dunedin, cultivating gourmet mushrooms for markets in the lower South Island. 

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Now many years down the line, MycoLogic was established as an evolved manifestation of two decades of working with fungi. Our focus is now on research and development of all things fungi, and empowering mushroom growers at both the home and commercial scales to be successful in their endeavours. 

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OUR ETHOS

Everything that we do is based upon a core set of principles which we work upon. To put it simply, we aim to help to make unique species of gourmet and medicinal mushrooms available and accessible to the people of Aotearoa, whilst continually striving to reduce environmental impacts and operate in an ethical way. Some of the cornerstones of our ethos include:
 

• PREMIUM QUALITY PRODUCTS  Or goal is to offer products that are of high quality and value. We only send out what we'd be happy using ourselves. Further to this, we spend large amounts of time continually evolving and refining the products and services that we offer.

• ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION  By culturing wild species of mushrooms and figuring out how to cultivate them, and sharing this information, we can collectively reduce stresses on wild populations of fungi which can occur from intensive foraging activity. It is our belief that mushroom cultivation is the best way to enjoy Aotearoa's unique fungal treasures without disrupting delicate ecosystems in the process. 

• WASTE REDUCTION  We are continuously mindful of the 'footprint' of human activities whether that be in terms of waste, energy consumption or any other forms of environmental impact. Whether we're working on new materials or methods for mushroom production to reduce waste, sending our products in compostable or recyclable packaging wherever possible, running spent substrate into our on-site composting or worm farm systems, or streamlining production to reduce energy footprints, waste reduction is always front of mind. 

• RESILIENT LOCAL FOOD SYSTEMS  One of the great things about mushrooms is that they are an extremely nutritious food source which can be grown almost anywhere, often on materials that are considered 'waste' from agricultural or urban industries. We hope to see mushroom cultivation become an integrated part of local food systems in general, whether that is home cultivation to supply your household, or small to medium scale commercial growers who can service the mushroom needs of local communities. 

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Some of the core elements of MycoLogic's work include: 

CULTURES SOURCING AND DEVELOPMENT

A key focus of our work involves finding and breeding new strains of gourmet and medicinal fungi for cultivation in New Zealand. This process begins with many hours spent in the outdoors, finding, identifying, and collecting live samples of wild fungi that are of interest. From here, cultures are trialled in cultivation. The cultures that we have available are the result of years of this process and selecting of the best varieties. Breeding work is ongoing to further improve these strains - a slow and technical, but worthwhile and rewarding process! All of our wild samples are collected with the necessary permits and registrations, including permission by local Iwi. 

 

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Not a day goes by where new ideas are not thought of, researched and tested in the MycoLogic workshop and laboratory space. Whether its tweaking substrate mixtures for better yields, through to growing novel species of fungi, or researching the potentials for 'applied mycology' in other spheres like environmental, medical or materials sciences, we are always keen to innovate, trial and test ideas in the real world. 

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EDUCATION AND CONSULTATION

There's little point in spending years learning about fungi if that knowledge isn't shared. So, a big part of what we do at MycoLogic is to pass knowledge on to growers from around New Zealand. Whether its at our ever popular mushroom cultivation workshops, through published educational materials, or one-on-one conversations with hobbyist or commercial growers, we're here to help! We also host an online group with a community of growers from around the country. 

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COLLABORATION AND RELATIONSHIP BUILDING

Just like mycelium, us fungi folks are stronger when we network and work together. Collaboration is a huge part of what we do, in any field that we work within. Whether it is building lasting relationships with small scale growers, through to partnering with researchers, educators and Iwi groups on projects in the institutional, community or commercial realms. If you have an idea about fungi and you think we could work together, please don't hesitate to get in touch! 

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