The Mushroom Farmer
Tom Brain quit his job as a police officer to open a boutique mushroom farm from his backyard in Christchurch, New Zealand. Now, growing mushrooms is his full-time gig.
The Mushroom Gallery
About Our Guest:
Tom Brain owns and operates a boutique mushroom farm from his backyard outside of Christchurch, New Zealand. After spending seven years with the New Zealand Air Force and another five with Auckland City Police, Tom moved to Christchurch and opened Oak & Spore. He sells his oyster and shiitake mushrooms at the Lyttelton Farmers’ Market on Saturdays. “Oak and Spore mushrooms aren’t just food,” Tom says. “They are a combination of science and art, which creates something truly delicious.”
Visit the Oak and Spore website for more information, and to view his online store which provides mushroom growing supplies for New Zealand hobbyists.
Tom also hosts a YouTube channel with great information how to grow mushrooms - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAb4KY7PfwoWV0OzoJ8bWkQ
The Time Stamps:
History of the Job - 00:05:55
Interview Begins - 00:08:17
The Social Stuff:
Tom’s Reddit post titled “I quit 12 years of government work to start a mushroom farm” can be found here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Entrepreneur/comments/e8mtcr/i_quit_12_years_of_government_work_to_start_a/
Subscribe to Tom’s YouTube Channel. Follow Oak & Spore on Facebook too.
Follow the podcast on Twitter and Instagram.
Follow host Avery Moore Kloss on Twitter and Instagram.
The Business Details:
Grown Up is produced by Folktale Studio. We help bring audio stories to life through podcasting and personal history projects. Visit www.folktalestudio.ca for more information.
More on Grown Up at our website -- www.grownuppod.com
Sounds You Heard:
Theme Music by Coop
New Zealand National Anthem performed by the United States Navy Band | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:New_Zealand_national_anthem,_performed_by_the_United_States_Navy_Band.wav#filelinks
Audio from Tom’s YouTube channel (from this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=st3jSMDh4xw&t=12s)
Facts You Heard:
Information on the history of cultivating mushrooms from:
GroCycle | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gt-_MmdKAVA
The Department of Botany at the University of Hawaii | http://www.botany.hawaii.edu/faculty/wong/BOT135/Lect16.pdf
Information on an existing mushroom cave in Paris, France | https://www.cntraveler.com/stories/2013-03-03/gourmet-mushroom-cave-loire-valley-france-vacation