Some people wouldn’t dare to eat mushrooms, but for those that enjoy the fungi, there are more than 2,000 kinds of edible mushrooms in the world. However, only a few are commonly found in grocery stores — like cremini, portabella, shiitake, and oyster mushrooms — and the majority of these are cultivated in one country.

China is by far the largest grower of mushrooms, and in 2020, the country produced 40 million metric tons of the fungi, followed ny Japan with 471,810 tons and the U.S. with 370,280 tons. The Chinese government assists poor farmers with loans, and in one village, 90% of these loans were used for mushroom farms.

If you’d like to try your hand at growing mushrooms, small-scale home mushroom growing kits are readily available, and they're a great way to save money and make sure your mushrooms are pesticide-free. However, regardless of where you get your mushrooms, they’re an excellent source of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.