JAY — Regional School Unit 73 board of directors Thursday night, Aug. 24, conditionally approved a contract for JustNiks Micosilva LLC to work with teachers and students to raise chaga mushrooms on district-owned land.

“The Spruce Mountain mycroforestry outdoor research project [MORP] is a program where Spruce Mountain High School students will have the opportunity to learn about fungi [chaga mushrooms] in an outdoor environment,” Rob Taylor, a science teacher at the high school, said. “Chaga mushrooms are a valued commodity, prized for their high levels of antioxidants.”

Students involved with the project will learn first hand about growing fungi within a forest, design and conduct experiments using scientific method, and will gain an appreciation for outdoor career opportunities, Taylor noted.

Justin Triquet and Nikki Leroux, owners of JustNiks Mycosilva LLC have graciously offered to provide dowels infused with chaga spores to inoculate birch trees in district owned forest property abutting its Jay schools, Taylor said.

“There is a strip as you are coming up the hill and around the corner near the high school that is about 12 acres forested land,” he stated. “There is a pretty good mix of trees, it has some yellow birch and white birch. We are proposing to inoculate the birch trees to provide opportunities for students to do research and experimentation. I think it is going to be a very beneficial program.”

In three years the chaga mushroom cones will develop, in five to seven years they will be harvested, Taylor noted. JustNiks will purchase those mushrooms and proceeds from their sale donated to support STEM projects in the schools, he said.

Director Tina Riley of Jay asked if there were any concerns about infecting other trees or the spread of invasive species.

“Chaga is already here in Maine,” Triquet said. He spoke of information from an article by Aaron Bergdahl, the state forestry pathologist, stating chaga occurs in 3.25% of birch trees in Maine. There are 17.5 million acres of forestland in Maine, half are birch trees, Triquet noted.

The chaga cone doesn’t have any spores in it, he said. It grows again when it is cut off, Triquet noted. The spores only survive 24-38 hours in the air, have to find a fresh wound within 100 yards, he added.

The chaga used is native to Maine, is already here, Taylor said.

“This is a win-win situation for us,” science teacher Ken Baker stated. “It gets kids outside, has the potential for elective mycology [mushroom/fungus] classes, a math team student is excited about statistical analysis work.”

The business side could be taught, it gets kids’ hands on stuff, they can learn a lot, he added.

Director Elaine Fitzgerald called the project exciting, said students would be able to take skills into the real world.

Chaga mushrooms are grown in more than 100 countries, Triquet said. “We are the first and only company in the United States,” he noted. “Finland has chaga cultivation as an elective at vocational schools.

“We came into this community about a year ago, it’s treated us really well. We felt embraced. Rob Taylor and Steve Gettle ended up showing up at a presentation at the Jay Select Board, we had never met them. They showed tremendous support.”

“At that meeting I walked in the door with a million questions,” Taylor said. “I felt like he answered my questions really well.”

Director Andrew Sylvester asked what some of the end products of chaga were.

“There are over 200 bioactive compounds in chaga,” Triquet said. A gas in it cures different kinds of cancer, chaga helps with things like allergies, eczema, etc., he noted.

“The value is in the health benefits, that is why it’s worth so much,” Taylor said.

Director Joel Pike asked if there were any risks for the district.

Triquet said he would provide the district with the 16-page agreement he uses in his business.

Chair Rob Staples said the board could work with the  district’s lawyer regarding the contract.

The contract would be long-term, probably throughout the life of the tree, Triquet said when asked if it would be for one year or longer. “Once the chaga is harvested, it grows back in another four to five years, then again four or five years later,” he noted.

The contract was approved pending review of the 16-page agreement.

In other business, Ron Smith owner of RHR Smith & Co. which conducts the annual audit for the district reported results from the Fiscal Year 2022 audit [July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022], said the audit for the 2022-2023 school year is underway.

The carry over balance from 2021 to 2022 grew from $1.5 million to a little north of $1.8 million, Smith noted. Regular instruction was over by $114,000 and buses/transportation over by about $20,000, he stated. The approved budget wasn’t overspent, those overages were offset by other line items being underspent, he said.

Food service, which wasn’t where it should be a year ago has grown to a $350,000 surplus, Smith noted. The district made changes to the way that was funded which was necessary, he stated.

“Financially you made a huge improvement from 2021 to 2022,”  Smith said. “Well done.”

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