A week ago, I mentioned how mushrooms were being used to take agricultural waste and turn it into an alternative to Styrofoam. Well, not only can mushroom be used to provide a biodegradable packaging material, it seems they could be used to break down disposable nappies which may take centuries to rot away.
The problem with nappies is they are high in cellulose, which does not decay quickly. However, oyster mushrooms will feed on this and can completely break down a nappy in 4 months. The nappies are steam treated to prevent the spread of disease, and then the mushrooms should, theoretically, be safe to eat. The problem with this is that the cost of the steam treating may make it non-viable. On the other hand, the selling of the mushrooms is really just a bonus compared with destruction of potentially billions of dirty nappies.
Source: The Economist: Bottom feeders
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