Edible fungi talents recognize each other in different places. Zhejiang Qingyuan’s -special skills- are shared across the country to promote common prosperity.

“Today, we are excited to present the ‘Qingyuan Mushroom Master’ (Advanced) certificate to Wu Jianhai. Let’s give him a round of applause!” Recently, the government of Hantai District in Hanzhong City, Shaanxi Province, collaborated with Qingyuan County in Lishui City, Zhejiang Province, to hold a certification ceremony honoring Wu Jianhai and 14 other recipients as ‘Qingyuan Mushroom Masters.’ This initiative aims to break down barriers in talent recognition between the two regions, enabling mutual acknowledgment of edible mushroom skill sets.

Qingyuan County is recognized as the birthplace of cultivated shiitake mushrooms. Over the years, the area has focused on cultivating skilled professionals, resulting in a significant number of ‘Qingyuan Mushroom Masters’ who have provided cultivation technical support to over 300,000 farmers across more than 400 counties in 20 provinces nationwide.

To dismantle local talent brand barriers, Qingyuan County is pioneering a new model for out-of-area certification. In July 2024, they established pilot programs in Hebei and Shaanxi provinces to conduct talent demand research, training, evaluation, and certification processes, thereby creating a robust chain for skills development.

Long Li, Deputy Director of the Hantai District Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau, stated, “The out-of-area mutual recognition mechanism will promote the effective mobility of skilled talents in the mushroom industry. We are committed to providing supportive policies for entrepreneurs in the edible mushroom sector, incorporating recognized ‘Qingyuan Mushroom Masters’ into our local talent programs.”

Currently, Qingyuan County is expanding its certification reach to other regions, including Guizhou and Jiangxi provinces. According to Li Ying, Deputy Director of the Qingyuan County Organization Department, a key area of focus moving forward will be finding effective pathways to integrate skilled talent with professional technical title recognition.

As of now, Qingyuan has certified 703 ‘Qingyuan Mushroom Masters’ through a rigorous selection and training process. Led by these experts, the entire industry chain has achieved a production value exceeding 5 billion yuan, and the brand value of ‘Qingyuan Mushrooms’ has reached 14.628 billion yuan, making it the leading mushroom brand in China for eight consecutive years.

Academician Li Yu from the Chinese Academy of Engineering and a mycologist, emphasizes that the recognition of the ‘Qingyuan Mushroom Master’ brand carries a deeper significance for the technological advancement of the entire edible mushroom industry.

“I truly believe that this mutual recognition mechanism will provide precise support for high-quality development in the national mushroom sector. In the future, I hope to leverage Qingyuan’s ‘forest-mushroom co-cultivation system’ experience to disseminate high-quality skilled resources across all mushroom-producing regions in the country, facilitating the sharing of benefits,” Li said.