Strong demand for Phillips Mushroom’s new Organic Gourmet Blend
The demand for organic mushrooms continues with strong growth expected, according to Kevin Donovan, national sales manager for Phillips Mushroom Farms, headquartered in Kennett Square, PA.
The company introduced its new Phillips Mushroom Farms Organic Gourmet Blend in the spring, and Donovan said it has been widely received by retailers across the nation.
“The Gourmet Blend four-ounce pack combines sliced Baby Bellas, sliced Shitakes and Yellow Oyster mushrooms, giving consumers a mix of their favorite varieties — and in an organic option,” said Donovan. “It stirred a lot of interest when we introduced it at the Organic Produce Summit in July, and demand has grown steadily.”
Making the new Gourmet Blend even more exciting is that Phillips Mushroom Farms recently obtained its food safety certification on Yellow Oyster Mushrooms, turning the item into a win-win for customers who want both organic and food safety certification.
“We will have the Gourmet Blend on hand at our booth,at the PMA Fresh Summit in October,” Donovan noted. “And we have another treat for visitors to our booth; we’ll be test marketing our new blended burger at the event.” The blended burger is currently being test marketed at colleges, and the early response has been highly positive.
“We know that the burger will do very well at foodservice operations,” said Donovan. “At the Fresh Summit, we’ll be interested in getting responses from retailers.”
Phillips Mushroom Farms is a multi-generation family-owned company that is a leading producer of a full range of both conventional and organic mushrooms. Its new cutting-edge mushroom farm in Warwick, MD, has been completed for about a year. Donovan said that the bugs have been worked out and it’s producing smoothly and strongly.
“We’re currently growing white conventional mushrooms at the new facility, but it is organized so that it can also produce organics as the market continues to grow,” he said. “We also have the ability to expand at the new facility when the need arises.”
He pointed out that demand for both organic and conventional mushrooms continues to grow strongly, and he attributes much of the growth to the marketing and promotional efforts put forth by the Mushroom Council in recent years.
“The council’s The Blend initiative continues to be a strong driver in the increasing consumption,” said Donovan. “And it has conducted research that has resulted in nutritional, medicinal and general health claims associated with increased mushroom consumption.”
He noted that it is now common to see The Blend being used in cooking channels, in consumer magazine and newspaper articles, food websites, television segments and other forms of media, adding that it’s quickly catching on in home kitchens.
“The Blend is a win-win for everyone,” he stressed. “Blended mushroom foods are more nutritious, lower in fat and even less expensive that meat proteins,” Donovan pointed out.
“The results from the Mushroom Council’s extensive research is being used today to help in marketing mushrooms, and it will continue to be used in the future to benefit not only the mushroom industry, but also health and science,” he added.