Workers process shiitake mushrooms at Zhejiang Sanjiangyuan Agricultural Development in Qingyuan county, Lishui. [Photo/Lishui Daily]

While mushroom farmers in Qingyuan county of Lishui, Zhejiang province, have gotten through the busy season, Zhejiang Sanjiangyuan Agricultural Development is still running its production lines at full speed.

Fresh shiitake mushrooms are shipped to Japan, South Korea, Europe, the Americas, and Southeast Asia via cold-chain logistics after undergoing humidity treatment.

The company has built nearly 3,000 mu (200 hectares) of cultivation bases in Inner Mongolia, Hebei, and Henan, allowing the mushrooms to be supplied year-round.

According to Ye Shengzhang, founder of the company, when Zhejiang becomes too hot for shiitake in summer, the bases in North China take over.

Ye began focusing on overseas exports in 1992, when foreign-grown fresh mushroom prices were more than double those in China.

The first shipment to South Korea suffered from high rates of spoilage, so the company invested in preservation technologies and upgraded its cold-chain logistics, significantly reducing losses. Last year, its overseas export reached $15 million in value.

Meanwhile, Qingyuan's shiitake industry has been developing. Supported by strong research platforms, the county has focused on strain selection and technical breakthroughs. It has standardized production and adopted intelligent farming techniques under a new development model combining centralized spawn production with decentralized cultivation.

The Qingyuan Shiitake Market has now become a national distribution hub for edible fungi, featuring over 30 varieties.

In deep processing, Zhejiang Fangge Pharmaceutical has launched China's first anti-tumor drug derived from maitake mushrooms, while Zhejiang Baixing Food exports over 500 processed products to more than 10 countries, driving the industry toward high-end and international markets.