Fsw Saba Suzanne Nielsens story on the awesome work of FSWS intern Peppe! Saban Mushrooms for Thanksgiving SABA—Mushroom dishes for the Saban Thanksgiving dinner table is a real possibility, speculates Giuseppe “Peppe” Alessandrello, an agricultural intern currently working on a project to grow mushrooms on the island. Peppe’s friendly face is now well known on the island and he intrigued a Sea&Learn audience with his unusual project. The object is to discover if mushroom farming is a viable agricultural business for the five-square mile island with such diverse microclimates. Peppe emphasized that this is first a feasibility study. Eight locations on Saba will be the experimental farming spots as soon as equipment and mushroom “seeds” arrive from abroad. Peppe said that Sabans were enthusiastic about being part of the experiment and he had received full cooperation.When installation is complete, harvest could follow in just a few weeks: mushrooms are fast growing. In the end, the goal is to have the entire supply chain here on Saba, creating jobs, income, and minimizing food imports. Mushroom farming might be ideal for Saba: There is a wide variety of species, cultivation is small scale, watering is very efficient, no hard labor is involved, it is highly profitable with a growing market, and all waste is 100% recyclable. In addition, the mushroom has high nutritional value. Three mushroom types have been chosen for the project: Shiitake, Lion’s Mane, and Emokitake. Each has a distinctly different taste. Various growing surfaces can be used, including a simple, but especially prepared, bag of sawdust. A lot of questions will be answered with strict scientific monitoring of temperature, humidity, altitude and of course the final result. Peppe has already created guidelines for looking into different agribusiness for the island. This document is available at the Foundation Social Workplace office in Windwardside. When the mushroom experiment is completed, an instruction manual specific to mushroom farming on Saba will also be presented to the public. Peppe, who is from Sicily and did his undergraduate work in Italy, is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Agricultural Engineering at the University Wageningen, near Utrecht. He considers Wageningen the ”world’s best” university for agricultural studies. All course work is behind him and he is concentrating on the two remaining requirements: a ”practicum”–his project on Saba – and a Thesis which he will begin next year. Suzanne Nielsens story on the awesome work of FSWS intern Peppe! Saban Mushrooms for Thanksgiving SABA—Mushroom dishes for the Saban Thanksgiving dinner table is a real possibility, speculates Giuseppe “Peppe” Alessandrello, an agricultural intern currently working on a project to grow mushrooms on the island. Peppe’s friendly face is now well known on the island and he intrigued a Sea&Learn audience with his unusual project. The object is to discover if mushroom farming is a viable agricultural business for the five-square mile island with such diverse microclimates. Peppe emphasized that this is first a feasibility study. Eight locations on Saba will be the experimental farming spots as soon as equipment and mushroom “seeds” arrive from abroad. Peppe said that Sabans were enthusiastic about being part of the experiment and he had received full cooperation.When installation is complete, harvest could follow in just a few weeks: mushrooms are fast growing. In the end, the goal is to have the entire supply chain here on Saba, creating jobs, income, and minimizing food imports. Mushroom farming might be ideal for Saba: There is a wide variety of species, cultivation is small scale, watering is very efficient, no hard labor is involved, it is highly profitable with a growing market, and all waste is 100% recyclable. In addition, the mushroom has high nutritional value. Three mushroom types have been chosen for the project: Shiitake, Lion’s Mane, and Emokitake. Each has a distinctly different taste. Various growing surfaces can be used, including a simple, but especially prepared, bag of sawdust. A lot of questions will be answered with strict scientific monitoring of temperature, humidity, altitude and of course the final result. Peppe has already created guidelines for looking into different agribusiness for the island. This document is available at the Foundation Social Workplace office in Windwardside. When the mushroom experiment is completed, an instruction manual specific to mushroom farming on Saba will also be presented to the public. Peppe, who is from Sicily and did his undergraduate work in Italy, is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Agricultural Engineering at the University Wageningen, near Utrecht. He considers Wageningen the ”world’s best” university for agricultural studies. All course work is behind him and he is concentrating on the two remaining requirements: a ”practicum”–his project on Saba – and a Thesis which he will begin next year.
Posted on: Thu, 31 Oct 2013 18:22:51 +0000