Olive oil industry generates huge quantities of solid olive mill wastes (SOMW), causing
environmental damage. Cultivation of edible mushrooms, such as Pleurotus ostreatus is a
valuable approach for SOMW valorization. A local strain mycelium (Tizi-Ouzou, Algeria) of
P. ostreatus (LPO) was isolated from castor oil plants. Oyster mushroom spawn, produced
on barley grains, was used to inoculate wet SOMW, steamed in a traditional steamer
during 45 min. The mycelium growth rate on SOMW was first estimated in Petri dish by
measuring the surface colonized by the mycelium. The fruit body yields were estimated on
culture bags containing 2 kg each of SOMW inoculated at 7% (w/w). The local strain
potential was compared with that of a commercial one. Both strains produced high-quality
mushrooms, but with low yields. The supplementation of the SOMW with wheat straw at
the rate of 10% and 2% of CaCO3 had significantly enhanced the productivity of the two
strains, multiplying it by 3.2 for LPO and by 2.6 for CPO.
2013 Acade ´mie des sciences. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved