Starting a circular agriculture business to build a sustainable value chain for farmers
Source: VFD.com
Pham An, owner of Gaco Mushroom Enterprise - Hong An Production and Trading Company Limited (Da Nang), found a way to connect all stages into a chain: from seeds, substrates, raw material areas to processing and output, so that growers have a place to sell their products, workers have jobs, and production facilities can stand firm in the long term. In the early days of mushroom farming, Pham An's biggest headache wasn't just how to grow healthy, beautiful, and high-quality mushrooms.
Even if you manage to grow mushrooms, not being able to sell them all remains a challenge. "The most difficult problem for me wasn't just growing a quality mushroom, but building a sustainable value chain," she said.
The company handles everything from mushroom spawn and substrates, collaborates with local farmers, transfers technology, and guarantees product purchase. They then process, package, and further develop the product, finding markets both domestically and for export.
Why this matters: For operators, this is a water-management story. The useful signal is that direct substrate measurements can help cut drain loss materially without giving up yield or fruit quality, which is exactly the kind of controllable efficiency gain a facility can build on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does substrate sensing matter in free-drain strawberry systems?
Because drain percentage tells a grower what already happened, while substrate moisture and EC data show root-zone conditions directly. That makes it easier to cut water loss without guessing.
What is the operator takeaway from this trial?
If the thresholds are understood well enough, growers can reduce drain water materially while protecting yield and fruit quality, which makes sensing an operational tool instead of a reporting tool.
