A Fungus To Save The Forests
- Sativ Steve
- Feb 21, 2019
- 2 min read
Progress and innovation are integral parts to making the human experience more comfortable. However even too much of a good thing can be bad. A modern communities goals need to be regulated and reconciled with ideas of sustainability, to ensure continual opportunity growth. In her post “Palm Oil - Everything You Need To Know”, Elaine Konsker brought to my attention the numerous drawbacks associated with the international cultivation of palm oil. In response I began thinking of possible solutions to help alleviate the problems she presented. These solutions looked toward more biodegradable options of oil which could then be used as a substitute.
Palm oil has long since been associated with mass deforestation and humans rights abuses. According to a study done by the Eden Tree, fifty percent of food and non food products found in grocery stores contain palm oil. Unfortunately it is a deeply ingrained part of modern cuisine and lifestyle. If no substitutes have stepped forward by this point what will?
My guess is mushroom oil! Or any oil derived from fungus; this includes mushrooms, yeasts, and molds. Groups like CarboCycle are embarking on this research. Currently there are many viable options for possible fungus based oils, however the largest barrier against this is the price of lab work and research for narrowing the best option. The price of lab work is not even that costly, the true issue is when its faced with the overwhelmingly cheap processes used for extracting palm oil.
The benefits for pursuing fungus oil rather than palm oil far out way the initial start up costs. Mushroom oil would serve to tackle two problems; deforestation and overflowing landfills. It reduces deforestation because it requires far less space and time to produce than palm oil. Estimates show that in a laboratory setting researchers would be able to carry out the entire process, start to finish, between two to four days. It would help tackle over-encumbered landfills by utilizing the organic and inorganic waste to grow the actual fungus. With current understanding of climate change how can we not afford to make this transition?
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I was intrigued by the article by Elaine as well. I had not known the strong dominance of palm oil in almost all consumable products. I think that we need to continue to think of alternatives to palm oil because it is so pertinent that the shear number/volume that is needed to replace palm oil is almost impossible to do with a single alternative.