When we think of mushrooms and often the southern Mexico state connected with Oaxaca, the initial thing which customarily comes to mind will be María Sabina, Huautla via Jiménez and hallucinogenic “magic” mushrooms. But slowly which all changing as a new result of the particular cutting edge work of Josefina Jiménez and Johann Mathieu in mycology, through their business, Mico-lógica. 
Based in often the small town of Benito Juárez, located in Oaxaca’s Ixtlán center (more commonly regarded as the Serrucho Septentrion, the state’s main ecotourism region), Mico-lógica’s quest is definitely threefold: to train both Mexicans and visitors for you to the nation in the low-cost cultivation of a range of mushroom species; to instruct about the medicamentoso, health and environmental (sustainable) associated with mushrooms; and to execute ongoing research regarding most effective damage locations and the particular diversity involving substrata intended for mushroom culture.
The French-born Mathieu moved to Mexico, plus in fact for you to Huautla via Jiménez, within 2004. “Yes, coming to Mexico from Italy to pursue my interest in mushrooms seems like a prolonged way to travel, very well Mathieu described in the modern interview in Oaxaca. “But there really had not been most of an opportunity to conduct studies together with expand a new business throughout European Europe, ” he / she remains, “since reverence regarding mushrooms acquired been just about totally eradicated by The Cathedral over the course involving centuries; and I found that Mexico still sustains some sort of respect and admiration for the medicinal and nutritional value connected with hongos. Mexico is not even close mycophobic. “
Huautla via Jiménez is additional than a a few hours drive from the best metropolitan center. Accordingly, Mathieu gradually realized that staying in Huautla, while possessing the cultural allure plus being in a new geographic area conducive in order to doing work with mushrooms, would impede his efforts to grow a good business and enhance popular interest in mastering about fungi. Mathieu started to be cognizant of the burgeoning reputation of Oaxaca’s ecotourism areas of the Sierra Septentrión, and indeed often the Alhóndiga Territorial de Hongos Silvestres (regional wild mushroom festival), kept annually in Cuahimoloyas.
Mathieu met Josefina Jiménez with the summertime end of the week mushroom event. Jiménez possessed moved to Oaxaca through hometown Mexico Metropolis throughout 2002. The two shared similar interests; Jiménez experienced studied agronomy, and with regard to close to a several years got been handling sustainable cultivation projects around rural farming communities inside Huasteca Potosina region regarding San Luis Potosí, the forest of Guerrero and the coastline involving Chiapas. Mathieu and Jiménez became business, and life partners in Benito Juárez.
Mathieu and Jiménez happen to be concentrating on three mushroom species in their hands-on workshops; oyster (seta), shitake in addition to reishi. Their one-day workshops are for oyster mushrooms, and two-day establishments for your latter two species of fungus. “With reishi, and to a lesser magnitude shitake, we’re also teaching some sort of fair tad with regards to the medicinal uses connected with mushrooms, so more time period is required, ” says Mathieu, “and with oyster mushrooms really predominantly [but not necessarily exclusively] a new program on cultivation. very well
While training seminars can be now just given inside Benito Juárez, Mathieu and Jiménez plan to expand operations to include both equally typically the central valleys and coastal regions of Oaxaca. The object is always to include a network of manufacturers growing different mushrooms which might be optimally suited for nurturing in line with the particular microclimate. At this time there are around 70 sub-species of oyster mushrooms, and thus as a species, the adaptability of the oyster mushroom to various climatic regions is remarkable. “The oyster can get grown in a very multitude regarding different substrata, that is precisely what we’re trial and error along with proper now, ” he elucidates. The oyster mushroom can easily thrive when grown on products which would often become waste, such because discard from cultivating pinto beans, sugar stick, agave (including the fibrous waste generated in mezcal distillation), peas, the common river reed known as carriso, sawdust, and the list goes on the subject of. Farming waste products which might otherwise be left to help rot or be burnt off, each with adverse environment benefits, can form substrata for mushroom cultivation. It has to be taken into account, though trite, that mushroom cultivation is a very environmentally friendly, green industry. Above the past many years South america has in fact been recently at the fore inside numerous areas of eco friendly sector.
Mathieu exemplifies the way mushrooms can serve a great most likely even greater the environmental good:
“They can keep up to thirty thousand times their mass, acquiring ramifications for inhibiting erosion. They’ve been used for you to clean up engine oil moisture through absorption and therefore happen to be an important vehicle to get habitat restoration. Research possesses recently been done with mushrooms in the battle against carpenter ant exploitation; they have been suggested that this usage of fungi has the particular potential to totally revamp the pesticide business around an environmentally friendly means. You can find actually hundreds regarding other bio-degradable applications intended for mushroom use, and throughout each case this mushroom remains a great edible function. Take a consider the John Stamets YouTube pitch, 6th Ways Mushrooms Can help Often the World. “
Mathieu in addition to Jiménez can often be found selling their products upon trips in the organic markets within Oaxaca. They may both more than ready to focus on the vitamins and minerals of their products which range coming from the natural way their fresh mushrooms, but in addition as preserves, marinated with both chipotle in addition to nopal or jalapeño and even cauliflower. The mushroom’s vitamin B12 can not be found within fruits or greens, and consequently a diet which usually consists of fungi is highly crucial for vegetarians who can not get B12, virtually all often contained in meat. Mushrooms may be easily a good substitute for meats, with the benefits that they are not packed with antibiotics and testosterone typically found in industrially processed beef products.
Mico-lógica likewise market teas in addition to extracts made from different mushroom species, each one formulated since either a nutritional supplement, or maybe for their healing qualities. While neither Mathieu nor Jiménez has the medicinal qualifications to order mycological therapy for critical health conditions, Mathieu’s own research factors to this medicinal make use of of mushrooms seeing via pre-history, to the found. This individual notes attributes associated with mushrooms which can aid to restore the immune system system, and thus the use of fungus as a good complement in the treatment of tumor together with ASSISTS, and their utility in controlling diabetes and managing high hypercholesteria.
“We should all be embracing the organic production of mushrooms, very well Mathieu concludes. “It’s very easy, it involves a minimal money investment, and that gives significant rewards, each for those ingesting hongos with regard to healthy and healing good reasons, and then for the producers, perhaps small-scale. Mico-lógica also sells dried up mushrooms. Yet buying psychedelics online of the dry mushrooms sold in Mexico will be imported from China, plus are not organic. It’s the authentic shame upon many amounts. “
Mexico and mushrooms have appear some sort of long way since the era of Oaxaca’s María Sabina. With the continuing hard work of Mathieu, Jiménez in addition to Mico-lógica, it need to not be much time before the world understands together with embraces the magic involving mushrooms within a significantly broader context.