Podcast: Dirtea duo on the "mushroom revolution" and building a brand through consumer education

The brothers say they “decided to front a mushroom revolution" when they founded the company 20 months ago.

With backgrounds in campaign design, the founders decided to build a product based on their personal beliefs and lifestyles after discovering functional mushrooms in 2016.

In this podcast, Simon tells NutraIngredients: "We found it weird that mushrooms aren't drunk by everyone. I'd say 90% of what's on the shelves is terrible quality, but also they don't appeal to the masses. We felt we had a duty and a purpose to really take it upon ourselves so we made it our mission to help people use mushrooms to take control of their health." 

The product catalogue is made up of one coffee blend and five single mushroom powders: Chaga; Cordyceps; Lion’s Mane; Reishi and Tremella, with all containing 2000mg of the active mushroom per serving.

The Dirtea duo believe that as the functional fungi industry grows in popularity, it’s never been more important for consumers to know and trust their sources.

The powders used in these products are produced from 100% fruiting bodies, the reproductive structure of the mushroom. All of the mushrooms in their products are hand selected by a team of pickers. Once harvested, they’re dried and crushed into a fine powder to create more surface area, then added to large pressure cookers filled with pure filtered water, which heats the cells and cracks the cell wall. The process is repeated until all the target compounds - polysaccharides and beta glucans - are separated from the chitin.