“Thanks to a process she called easy and streamlined… VEDA was able to stay creative, assessing her business plan and bringing a flexibility to the table that other institutions may not have been able to.”
Kat Clear’s name most often comes to mind in the art world. As a metal worker, she creates metal signage, sculpture, and architectural elements.
And she’s still an artist — but now she grows mushrooms.
In many ways, mushroom farming, under the moniker Blue House Mushroom, is an extension of her artwork, keeping her connected to the physical world and creating something special.
“It was sort of like a COVID baby,” Clear said. At that time, she had a small child at home and was unhappy leaving to go to work. From there, she began to dream up ways to work and be home with her family.
After visiting a mushroom farm out of state, she was hooked. That farmer’s advice for her? “If you can grow flowers you can grow mushrooms.”
So, her basement became home to her new venture.
Her keen eye has helped in the process; she’s always naturally looking and observing. The fact that she had been part of the local food community for years helped, too. Connecting with restaurants and other farmers, she asked the right questions, sold mushrooms on Front Porch Forum and forged ahead with the company.
“It was sort of an experiment: ‘Can I grow mushrooms and will anyone buy them?’ And they did,” she said. The first batch came in late 2020.
Now, just a few years later, Clear produces about 100 pounds of mushrooms a week. And even that isn’t filling the market’s demand.
So it was time to grow.
Not one to shy away from a new risk, Clear, then pregnant with her second child, began searching for funding to construct a building.
Through connections at the Intervale in Burlington she learned about the Farm Viability Program, a two-year state-funded program to help locals create and implement business plans.
The next step was securing funding from VEDA for infrastructure and the Farm Service Agency for equipment.
The new space will allow Clear to grow more mushrooms, of course — she hopes to double production by the end of 2025 — and allow her to keep diners, chefs and more chock-full of champignons.
“It’s all a big leap of faith,” she said. “I’ve never scaled a business this size and it’s very exciting. Slightly daunting, but I’m really excited and happy that we’re going forward.”
Thanks to a process she called easy and streamlined, Clear even recalled site visits from VEDA Loan Officer Eric Hall and a representative from the FSA about three months after giving birth. VEDA was able to stay creative, assessing her business plan and bringing a flexibility to the table that other institutions may not have been able to.
Read the story on VTDigger here: Blue House Mushroom: The art of the agaric.