Economic, nutritional, and efficiency assessment of recycled casing soil and compost nutritional supplements for sustainable white button mushroom cultivation

Ali Eslamizadeh, Sepideh Kalateh Jari, Ali Mohammadi Torkashvand, Mohammad Farsi and Mohamadreza Salehi Salmi

PLOS ONE, 2026, vol. 21, issue 8, 1-26

Abstract: Background: Optimizing white button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus L.) cultivation requires balancing economic, nutritional, and environmental goals—a challenge rarely addressed systematically. While recycled casing materials and nutritional supplements have been individually studied, their combined effects under multi-objective decision-making frameworks remain unexplored. Methods: This study introduces a two-phase framework to identify sustainable strategies based on producer priorities. In the first phase, a r.andomized split-plot field experiment (three replications, one year) evaluated seven casing soil formulations (including recycled materials and peat alternatives) and five nutritional supplements (soybean meal and corn grit at different levels). Yield, quality, and nutritional traits were assessed across three flushes. In the second phase, a goal programming (GP) model integrated these data to optimize three conflicting objectives: economic profit, a nutritional index (based on Mg, Zn, Cu, Mn, protein, and fiber), and the third-flush yield ratio. Results: The optimal combination was casing formulation C5 (20% Tima peat, 40% recycled soil, 25% fresh bagasse, 10% fermented bagasse, 5% calcium carbonate+perlite) with 1500 g/m2 corn grit (S5). This solution balanced all three objectives while incorporating 40% recycled material, supporting circular economy principles. Corn grit supplementation significantly enhanced yield (up to 36,669 g/m2) and economic profit, outperforming soybean meal. The GP-based framework demonstrated robust stability against weight variations (signal-to-noise ratio > 1.75), confirming its reliability for decision-making. Conclusions: The synergistic use of recycled casing soils with corn grit supplementation establishes a robust, agronomically sound model for commercial mushroom cultivation, delivering superior economic return while maintaining yield efficiency and nutritional quality. The validated GP framework offers growers a practical tool to systematically evaluate trade-offs and identify optimal cultivation strategies aligned with their specific priorities.

Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:plo:pone00:0337146

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0337146

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