Shroom boom: why mushroom coffee is a big hit

Nickee Stephenson has a mild mushroom addiction; she gets a fix daily, twice if she can afford it or “find a way to get it.”

The 32-year-old Mount Maunganui manager of a global fitness brand says it gives her the energy she needs to get through the day.

“I raved about it to coworkers, and they inquired as to whether I was attempting to get them high. Now thirteen of them are hooked as well.”

Since moving to Australia, Tom Paterson has been missing his daily mushroom fix in the Mount.

“I simply haven’t discovered anything as good.”

The 31-year-old photographer says his friends began to joke about how much he talked about it. “It unquestionably helped me feel more at ease and focused.”

Move over flat whites; mushroom coffee is the coffee that has Mount hipsters buzzing.

Are mushrooms a healthy food? We delve into the origins of this new craze. Mushrooms are enjoying a renaissance, and New Zealanders are cultivating their own.

According to owner Holly Cummins, it is the most popular coffee on the menu at organic café Vitality Organics. The $6.50 ‘Maca Mocha with Shrooms’ outsells all other coffees and smoothies on the menu, and Holly has daily mushroom customers like Nickee and Tom.

Each day in the Mount, Tom Peterson drank mushroom coffee.
It’s a conversation starter for those who haven’t tried it, she says.

“People enquire as to whether these are magical mushrooms. Yes, they are magical in their ability to make you feel.”

According to Holly, the mushrooms in the coffee are “medicinal mushrooms,” which were used in ancient Chinese medicine.

“People report feeling more alert and focused, but without the caffeine high and crash. It benefits immunity and gut health, as well as mood and stress.”

Holly, who suffers from an autoimmune condition, reports that her health has improved significantly since she began taking the mushrooms daily. Nickee, a mushroom coffee enthusiast and fitness enthusiast, previously owned a coffee shop but says she now has “more energy and endurance without the caffeine crash.”

Since the Covid pandemic, Holly has noticed an increase in demand for mushroom coffee.

“The public is eager to learn about natural products that boost immunity and overall health. Mushrooms have been used for healing purposes since ancient times, and as more people become aware of their benefits and spread the word, there is a bit of a mushroom boom.”

Read more • stuff.co.nz