Gandhinagar: After pursuing a career in banking, Varsha Alok turned to farming. For the past couple of years, the entrepreneur has been cultivating mushrooms in a controlled environment at Dholka taluka of Ahmedabad district. She grows about 250 tonnes of button mushrooms annually and supplies them to pharma companies, among others. An expert in controlled environment farming, Varsha worked in various banks in Ahmedabad and Mumbai and holds a PhD in Controlled Environment Farming, apart from studying Food and Agribusiness Management at IIM Ahmedabad. Originally from Uttarakhand, her interest in modern farming led her to transition from banking to farming. Since mushrooms thrive in cool, humid environments, which are not typically available here, she developed a facility in Dholka using modern technology to grow mushrooms throughout the year. With guidance from personnel of the horticulture directorate, Varsha developed a facility along with a cooling plant. Mushrooms are grown in plastic bags filled with compost on iron racks.According to the banker-turned-farmer, the unit has eight such iron racks, producing about 250 tonnes of mushrooms annually. If these mushrooms were grown on land, it would require at least an acre of land. She also provides regular employment to 50 people, including 40 women from Dholka. According to her, harvesting is like picking fruit from a tree. Just as picking fruit doesn’t kill the tree, harvesting mushrooms doesn’t kill the main fungus (mycelium) beneath. If the mycelium remains undamaged and gets proper moisture, temperature, and nutrition, it can produce new mushrooms.Varsha says that this type of futuristic farming is practised in France, Japan, and Israel, and the state has huge potential for futuristic farming.