Business Booms For ‘Mushroom Dave’ Of Bridgehampton

Business is booming for the East End’s first organic mushroom farmer.

Founded by David Falkowski 12 years ago, Open Minded Organics was bootstrapped out of his house for the first two years. Earning the moniker “Mushroom Dave,” Mr. Falkowski would visit neighbors, showing them his produce and explaining the benefits of eating mushrooms.Now, Open Minded Organics, which is based in Bridgehampton, sets up at farmers markets seven days a week during the summer, delivering organic mushrooms and specialty foods on 45 miles of the East End, from the Montauk to Westhampton Beach farmers markets. In addition to a farm stand on Butter Lane in Bridgehampton, Open Minded Organics is also involved with Amagansett Food Institute in programming, and it supplies high-end restaurants like Fresh in Bridgehampton or Il Capuccino restaurant in Sag Harbor.

As for the mushrooms themselves, they are now grown in a climate-controlled room where cylindrical bags stuffed with pasteurized straw hang from the ceiling. Yellow and blue oyster mushrooms sprout from the sides, looking alien-like as they project outward, stacking one on top of another.

Each bag is inscribed with the word “love,” as Mr. Falkowski follows the teachings of Masaru Emoto, a Japanese doctor of alternative medicine who said that human intention affects growth.

“After we pack the bags, we punch the holes. In their head, [the staff] has to say, ‘Love, health and happiness,’” said Mr. Falkowski. Although he admitted that most might think it is “hooey-wooey,” he thinks, wouldn’t you rather have certified organic mushrooms where, when the people grow them, they literally have a mantra of love, health and happiness?

Although he is committed to growing organic mushrooms, Mr. Falkowski shies away from the organic label, as he believes that it can be misused by people who are interested in making a quick sale.

“Organic is a benchmark and many local farmers are exceeding that,” he said. Farmers should hold themselves to a higher standard than certified organic, he said, as the use of fungicides, pesticides and antibiotics are all approved for organic production by the USDA.

“You can be certified 'organic' by neglect,” said Steve Storch, founder of Natural Science Organics, a local company that offers biodynamic and organic farming solutions. Open Minded Organics uses Mr. Storch’s trademark vortex tea brewer, in addition to other methods that aim to improve soil and put nutrients back into the land. Mr. Falkowski uses many of these products on his farm, where he also cultivates potatoes, eggplants, beets, kale and salad greens, among other things.

“Mushrooms are largely moisture,” he said, as he pointed to the control panel that regulates humidity, temperature and air movement for his fungi. His grow rooms—actually, there is one for spawning and one for growth—are highly synchronized environments that took years of testing to calibrate.

“It is not a set it and forget it,” he said, comparing the constant climate fluctuations to a “dance.” The changing environment helps to minimize contaminant vectors, which can be anything from insects to dirty well water to human touch.

Running his operation on what was his father’s tree nursery, Mr. Falkowski said that it took a lot of friends, and beers, to help clear the land. Residential development projects dot the skyline where he and other family members now operate their respective agricultural businesses.

“I am fortunate to know that I am here and I am not subject to a [lease agreement] with a large organization,” he said. It would have been difficult for him to invest financially in the grow houses if he were working with, say, a five-year lease on preserved farmland.

Mr. Falkowski explained that, with many land easements, building “structures is very difficult.” Although he is subject to some rules set by family members, his career as a mushroom farmer is possible in large part because his family owns their land.

If Open Minded Organics continues to expand, Mr. Falkowski plans to keep the same “boutique mushroom business” concept by creating satellite facilities in other areas. “The more you produce and the larger volume, the more cumbersome your distribution system becomes,” he said. “My biggest thing besides being certified organic is fresh. In theory, these are on your table in 24 hours.”

“People want it fresh, and you can see a significant difference,” said Mr. Falkowski, whose favorite way to eat mushrooms is from the grill.

“Start with the gills up, just enough olive oil to make salt, pepper, garlic powder stick, splash Worcestershire sauce, medium to high heat,” he said, adding that his mushroom of choice would be the Blue Oyster.

“They start to sear, get a little crisp, flip it over, another squirt of Worcestershire sauce—depending on the heat of your grill, could be another 15 minutes—you kind of want them well-done with that crisp, and it tastes like a piece of meat.”