From Farm to Fork: FungALL's Mushrooms Nourish South Manchester Communities 🍄

This past week has been a testament to what local food systems can truly accomplish when communities come together! Our latest mushroom harvest didn't just yield beautiful fungi—it translated directly into over 50 community meals across South Manchester, bringing nutritious, locally-grown food to our communities. With a load more to come!

Our recently renovated Merseybank Farm took its first baby steps!...

At the Merseybank Café, our oyster mushroom burritos continued to win hearts and satisfy appetites—proving once again that sustainable food can be both delicious and accessible. Meanwhile, over at Forever Fields in Whalley Range, we had the joy of introducing something new. The Queer Roots Collective became the first community group to sample our vegan Korean BBQ oyster mushroom rice bowls - a flavor-packed creation that perfectly showcases the versatility of locally-grown fungi. Based on the enthusiastic reception, this dish has definitely earned a permanent spot in our recipe rotation!#

Kate and Owen with a monster of a mushroom!

Behind the Harvest: Our Green Leaders

None of this would be possible without the continued dedication and innovation of our Green Leaders—Kate, Dylan, and Owen. Their methodical experimentation with different mushroom substrate mixes has been crucial to optimizing our yields and ensuring consistent harvests throughout the year.

Their work represents the kind of practical research and development that grassroots food projects need, testing sustainable growing methods and improving efficiency while maintaining our commitment to circular economy principles. We'll be sharing more about these incredible community champions and what they’ve been up to in the coming weeks.

We also want to extend special appreciation to John and the team at Groundwork who have supported FungALL since day one and provided the foundations to what we’ve built upon!

Cooking over at the Forever Feilds location

Growing Our Community Impact

This flourishing of community meals comes as a result of our existing community mushroom lab at the Carlton Club, supported by In Our Nature. This valuable space has been instrumental in developing our growing techniques and supporting the Green Leaders program that made these successful harvests possible.

The community mushroom lab represents exactly the kind of local, sustainable food initiative that strengthens community resilience while addressing food security challenges. By growing food locally, we reduce food miles, create educational opportunities, and build stronger connections.

As we continue to grow both mushrooms and community connections, we remain committed to our core mission: creating resilient local food systems that nourish both people and the planet. Each meal shared represents not just delicious food, but a step toward a more sustainable and connected Manchester.

Stay tuned for more updates from our mushroom network—there's plenty more growing just beneath the surface!