Hey green friends! I just learned about an amazing new use for fungus! It turns out that an organic farm in California is growing mushrooms to be used as building and packaging materials. Cool, huh?
In the picture above you see a cluster of mushrooms. At the bottom of the cluster is a dark network of fibers called mycelium. Mycelium is not for eating, but it IS fireproof, nontoxic and resistant to water. It’s also stronger than concrete!!!
In this next picture, you can see a structure made entirely out of mycelium. Maybe someday we can use it to make houses and bridges. (Move aside Smurfs!)
The material is also being used as a green alternative to Styrofoam (a packing material that does not decompose, cannot be recycled and is awful for the environment). After you receive a package stuffed with mushroom material, you can toss it into your garden as compost!
Hooray for mushrooms!
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