Functional Mushroom Market

Market Overview

The global functional mushroom market size was valued at USD 27,750.70 million in 2021. It is projected to reach USD 59,283.52 million by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 8.80% during the forecast period (2022-2030).

Functional mushrooms are fungi praised for their health advantages over and above their nutritional value. Depending on the type of mushroom utilized, different benefits may apply. A wide range of medical or pharmaceutical items contains functional mushrooms. This feature makes these mushrooms more useful in the food and beverage industry. Since these mushrooms are increasingly used as health supplements, their use as a functional ingredient in the medical sector is causing the market to rise. The two medicinal mushrooms with the highest demand on the market are reishi and cordyceps.

Market Dynamics

Functional Mushroom Market Drivers

Increasing Demand for the Functional Food and Dietary Supplements

Over the past 20 years, a significant change has occurred in how individuals live their lives and what they eat. This trend was driven by urbanization and consumerism, which resulted in a sharp increase in the consumption of synthetic food products and an uptick in the prevalence of lifestyle diseases. Consumers are gradually shifting toward functional foods and beverages, which are marketed as having advantages beyond just nutrition. These goods are said to offer the best nourishment and lower the chance of getting sick. Health-conscious customers are becoming increasingly enamored with functional meals.

For instance, coffee and chocolate are combined with reishi, Chaga, and turkey tails. Turkey tails are flavorful enough to be included in broths and soups. Simple sautéing of maitake and shiitake mushrooms in garlic is lovely. Additionally, the businesses include good mushrooms in their product lines. Lifehouse Tonics debuted alcoholic beverages with mushrooms as a primary component. For instance, Four Sigmatic's coffee, tea, and supplement categories now include medicinal mushrooms.

Global Functional Mushroom Market Restraints

High Costs and Weak Public Conscience about Functional Mushroom

For many years, the Chinese have been unable to successfully cultivate this fungus, leading to a significant price increase. As a result, a fixed supply of wild cordyceps Sinensis was in greater demand. China only recently discovered how to grow this mushroom. The costs of wild cordyceps Sinensis have not yet been impacted because it is not yet at a production level. Additionally, due to the limited availability of functional mushrooms in many regions of the world, online retail channels like Amazon sell one of the functional mushroom extract powders from Cordyceps Mushroom for a maximum price of USD 91 for 60g. This product is called Real Mushrooms Cordyceps Mushroom Extract Powder.

The cost of functional and regular mushrooms differs significantly, which raises the final price of the goods. This effect has resulted in reduced demand for functional mushrooms. The market for functional mushrooms is also somewhat restrained in developed regions like North America and Europe. Most functional mushrooms are imported primarily from China due to low public awareness, limited availability, and high prices compared to ordinary mushrooms. As a result, functional mushrooms are generally more expensive to purchase.

Global Functional Mushroom Market Opportunities

Medical Benefits of Functional Mushrooms

The anti-inflammatory properties, which are helpful for people with a variety of medical conditions that include inflammation as a symptom, and the presence of substances like antioxidants, which can help boost blood flow, are expected benefits mentioned by proponents of the functional mushroom trend. Although each functional mushroom has unique health advantages, they all work to maintain a healthy energy level, boost the immune system, ease digestion, and bring out the natural glow in the skin. For example, Antioxidants increase blood flow, lower stress, promote immunity, and provide many other benefits that fuel the global demand for functional mushrooms.

Reishi and cordyceps lead all other varieties of medicinal mushrooms in market share for functional mushrooms. Reishi aids in lymphocyte function improvement, which helps athletes in stressed circumstances fight cancer and infections. Furthermore, Cordyceps, primarily utilized by many professional athletes to increase endurance, stamina, and energy and shorten recovery time following a rigorous workout, boosts mitochondrial ATP synthesis by as much as 40%. The consumer's immune system is strengthened and balanced by all of these medicinal mushrooms.

Regional Analysis

The global functional mushroom market is bifurcated into four regions, namely North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA.

Asia-Pacific Dominates the Global Market

Asia-Pacific is the most significant shareholder in the global functional mushroom market and is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 9.00% during the forecast period. Functional mushrooms were named for longevity and spirituality, and they have been a crucial component of Chinese medicine for over 2,000 years. Chinese royal and aristocratic families have employed functional mushrooms as a tonic for energy, vitality, and endurance and to support a robust immune system for thousands of years. About 3,000 years ago, China began using mushroom supplements. Consumers across the market are giving more weight to safety, nutrition, and the consumption of healthy foods that have specific medical benefits due to rising income levels among urban and rural Chinese consumers, as well as the transformation of the comprehensive health awareness and consumption concept. This is increasing the demand for practical mushrooms.

North America is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 9.10%, generating USD 5,660.20 million during the forecast period. Americans have adopted functional mushrooms as a superfood and have used them in food, medicine, and even cosmetics. Despite having a lesser production than other countries, the nation is one of the most significant users of valuable mushrooms. According to statistics from the USDA, barely 3% of the U.S. mushroom market is made up of functional mushrooms. The most common edible mushrooms grown in the nation are shiitake and oyster. The country's production of valuable mushrooms is likewise in greater demand. Since mushrooms are excellent accumulators, the air, the water, and everything else in their environment spontaneously accumulate into the finished goods.

Europe is expected to grow significantly during the forecast period. Since there is fierce competition from imports into the United Kingdom, particularly from Ireland, Holland, France, and Belgium, the market throughout the United Kingdom is one of the leaders in growing the demand for functional mushrooms. The market is anticipated to withstand the effects of rapid changes, even though price volatility continues to be a negative element due to the high consumption rate. The accessibility of medicinal mushrooms is among their most unexpected qualities. There are several different animals with excellent medicinal potential in the United Kingdom. The expanding millennial demographic, where the demographics generally consider knowing the food source through labeling and its impact on the environment, is mainly responsible for the move toward the regular intake of functional mushrooms.

Brazil, Argentina, and other nations in Latin America are included in the South American functional mushroom market. Agaricus brasiliensis, commonly known as ablazei or a subrufescens, is a fungus grown in Brazil and well-liked in Japan because of its therapeutic qualities. This has led to increased Agaricus brasiliensis production, and Japan has emerged as one of the mushroom's top importers. Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the rest of the Middle East and Africa are included in the Middle East and Africa region. Around the world, including in Africa, the cultivation of mushrooms for food and medicinal is gaining popularity.

Segmental Analysis

The global functional mushroom market is segmented by type and application.

Based on type, the global functional mushroom market is bifurcated into reishi, cordyceps, lion's mane, turkey tail, and others.

The cordyceps segment is the highest contributor to the market and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.70% during the forecast period. Since the fifteenth century, traditional Chinese and Tibetan medicine has extensively used cordyceps mushrooms. To produce these mushrooms, a caterpillar and a fungus must get together, which is incredibly unusual and only seen in the Himalayas and other high-altitude regions of the planet at elevations above 4,500 meters. The anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory qualities of cordyceps are what make them so popular. Traditional healers in several East Asian nations advise cordyceps mushrooms as a tonic. Additionally, these healers have found that these mushrooms offer significant amounts of vitality, stamina, and endurance in relieving asthma and bronchitis. They also enhance appetite and sleeping habits.

Elixir of Life or Mushroom of Immortality is another name for the traditional Chinese medication reishi. China, South Korea, and Japan substantially use these mushrooms in traditional medicine. Consuming these mushrooms improves the body's ability to produce white blood cells. Reishi is frequently ingested because of its possible cancer-fighting abilities, which may cause cancer cells to die in the body. They can improve heart health, combat depression and weariness, and manage blood sugar. These qualities are raising the demand for reishi mushrooms worldwide.

The nerve growth factor (NGF), which is responsible for the processing and transfer of information in the brain, can be stimulated by lion's mane mushrooms, making them one of the most effective nutrients for the brain. Regular consumption of lion's mane helps to increase the number of neurons, ultimately increasing brain activity. These mushrooms have high nutritional content and offer several advantages, including enhancing memory focus, healing from illnesses, and acting as a rejuvenator. Several studies have suggested that lion's mane may provide cancer prevention. For instance, a 2011 study by the journal Food & Function found that studies on human cells showed that the lion's mane was effective in killing leukemia cells.

Based on application, the global functional mushroom market is bifurcated into food and beverage, dietary supplements, personal care, and pharmaceutical.

The personal care segment owns the highest market share and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.65% during the forecast period. Numerous mushrooms and their components are recognized to support healthy skin and hair. Phenolics, polyphenolics, terpenoids, selenium, polysaccharides, vitamins, and volatile chemical compounds are the prominent components in functional mushrooms. These ingredients are helpful for cosmetics because of their antioxidant, anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, skin-whitening, and moisturizing properties. Numerous mushrooms, including shiitake, maitake, and tremella, support skin health. They have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant characteristics that aid in healing various skin issues brought on by inflammation and excessive free radical activity. The well-known skin-lightening ingredient kojic acid is present in several helpful mushroom types.

Mushrooms, including portobellos, shiitakes, enokitake, and maitake, are growing more rapidly thanks to contemporary gardening techniques. Commercially, the advantages of these mushrooms encourage their use in foods that have new flavors and are functional. Functional mushrooms can be used as bread flour due to their strong umami content and ability to replace cereal flours due to their high nutritional fiber content. Cheese and cheese-based products gain extra medical benefits from functional mushrooms. These mushrooms aid in the prevention of thrombosis and cancer. Chaga, cordyceps, lion's mane star, and reishi mushrooms are the most commonly marketed functional mushrooms by grocery stores. New versions of these mushrooms are available at numerous other supermarkets and grocers.

Functional mushrooms have been consumed in China for over 2,000 years as a food or dietary supplement due to their comprehensive medical capabilities. Their extractable components skyrocketed in prominence as biological function-improving products in 1980. These good mushrooms contain several different forms, including extracts, liquid, tablets, and powder. Dietary supplements created using these mushrooms' extracts are triterpenoids, water-soluble polysaccharides, complex carbohydrates, proteins, and amino acids. They also contain antioxidants and have immunological, anticancer, and cholesterol-lowering qualities. As a result, they are employed in treating various conditions, including diabetes, respiratory issues, viral infections, heart and kidney ailments, liver issues, insomnia, anxiety, and nervous system disorders.

Recent Developments

• June 2021- Marley partnered with Silo Wellness Inc., a leading global psychedelics company in Toronto, launched Marley One, the first global functional and psychedelic mushroom consumer brand.
• December 2021- Psyence Group Inc. announced that its joint venture, Goodmind, partnered with one of South Africa's largest coffee retail chains - Vida e caffè - to roll out its available mushroom brand in South Africa.