The Fungus Among Us and Is New Zealand Sleeping on a Woodear Mushroom Windfall?

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Back in the 1870s, a Chinese immigrant named Chew Chong was foraging black fungi in Taranaki and shipping them by the tonne to China. (Depiction shown below) The fungus? Hakeke. Known to the rest of the world as Woodear mushroom. Today, more than a century later, New Zealand’s long-forgotten export hero is suddenly back in fashion, everywhere but in the Land of the Long White Cloud.

Maybe there’s a wood ear market going begging?

Because while we’ve been fixated on meat analogues and milk from microbes, the humble wood ear has quietly become one of the most cultivated and culturally valuable mushrooms on the planet. China alone churns out over seven million tonnes a year. TikTok chefs love the chewy crunch. Health nuts love the fibre and heart-friendly beta-glucans. And supply chain nerds love the fact it grows on scrap wood and sells globally for under two bucks a kilo.

So what exactly is this thing?

Wood ear mushrooms (Auricularia spp.) grow wild on decaying hardwood. They do indeed resemble a slightly creepy rubber ear, and they rehydrate like a sponge — which is why you’ll often see them dried in bulk bins or vacuum packs across Asia. They’re a staple in hot and sour soups, stir-fried greens, herbal broths and increasingly, gut health snacks in modern functional formats.

And yes, they’re surprisingly good for you. Traditional Chinese medicine has long touted wood ear as a circulation booster. Western research now links its bioactive compounds to immune modulation, cholesterol reduction, antimicrobial action and even blood-thinning properties. Add to that its low calorie, high fibre, no-fat profile and it starts sounding less like a fringe player and more like a foundational food.

From a cultivation perspective, it’s a no-brainer. These mushrooms don’t need pristine forest or fancy facilities. They grow on agricultural waste, sawdust, or logs, with minimal inputs and maximum yield. That’s precisely why small farms and emerging circular economies are getting in on the action. In the US, specialty mushroom sales spiked 32% year-on-year, with wood ears gaining traction among boutique growers. And in China, entire towns revolve around the Auricularia harvest with Qingyuan County alone generating around $1 billion in annual economic output just from wood ear cultivation.

Source: PFN Archives - Commercially Grown Woodear Mushrooms

Meanwhile, here in New Zealand ? Silence. Despite having native species (Auricularia cornea), the once-thriving wood ear trade faded post-1950s. Today, hardly anyone’s growing it, branding it, or packaging it for export. Which begs the question: why aren’t we capitalising on our fungi-friendly forests and myco-cultural heritage?

It ticks all the boxes. Is it sustainable? Check. Functional? Check. Global appeal? Growing. Export potential? Proven. This isn’t just some novelty fungus. It’s an adaptogenic shroom with low risk, high return, and ancient provenance. And with Gen Z and Alpha demographics searching for gut-friendly foods, plant-based and planet-positive, the moment might be ripe to lend more than your ears.

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