Te’Lario Watkins II, The Mushroom Farmer, Food Activist Talks To Global Child Prodigy

Te’Lario Watkins II, the 13-year-old Mushroom Farmer, recently had an exclusive interview with Global Child Prodigy under Prodigy Talks. The renowned Entrepreneur, Educationalist, and Humanitarian, Mr. Kavin Kumar Kandasamy, hosted the talk. He is also the Managing Director of Mangalam Educational Institutions. Mr. Kavin’s institutions serve more than 7000 students every year.

Let’s get to know the inspiring story behind the success of Te’Lario Watkins II in this interview.

Hello Te’Lario, How Are You? Please Tell Us A Little About Yourself

Hi, I’m doing good. My name is Te’Lario Watkins II, and I’m a 13-year-old mushroom farmer from Ohio.

When Did You Start Mushroom Farming?

I started farming when I was seven years old. It began when I started enjoying growing cat grass and basil during my first cub scout meeting, and it inspired me to keep increasing something during the winters. I found out that mushrooms were the perfect thing to grow in the cold and dark. So I started growing mushrooms.

Was It A Success When You Started?

I had some issues with getting the right humidity and temperature for growing different types of mushrooms. I contacted a business named ‘Back to the Roots‘ and bought mushroom kits from them. That’s how it started.

What Did Your Parents Think About It?

At first, they were skeptical. The more we started doing it, the more they felt that this could be something big. So they began to like it better.

How Long Does It Take You To Grow Mushrooms?

The process of growing mushrooms only takes two weeks. All you have to ensure is that both the temperature and humidity are right.

Right Now, How’s The Whole Thing Working For You?

It’s going well. I’m pretty much doing it full-time. I always make sure that everything is alright with them. By farming, I produce a yield of about 100 pounds of mushrooms every week.

Tell Us A Little About Your Participation in the Students Rebuild Challenge

I participated in the Students Rebuild Hunger Challenge created by the Bezos Family Foundation and helped develop recipes to end hunger. For this challenge, people would create recipes and then send them to us. The foundation donated six dollars for every recipe they received. They were contributing that money to an organization that was working to end hunger. I had a lot of people supporting me in this challenge.

Te’Lario, Is Your Business Self-Sustainable?

My business, Tiger Mushroom Farms, is self-sustainable. I came up with this name because when I started my mushroom business, I was a Tiger scout, so the idea came from there.

How Are People Reacting to Your Business?

At first, some people find it hard to believe that a young kid has started a business, but they usually get interested and start supporting me in my endeavors as soon as they see me. My community helps me a lot. Some people at school know about my business. They get excited by the thought that someone from their school has started a business. So they support me in that way.

What Are Your Future Plans About Your Business?

I try to develop new seasoning for mushrooms; I also aim to have a warehouse to grow more different types of mushrooms and expand my business. Right now, I only grow two types of mushrooms include Shiitake and Oyster mushrooms.

How Do People Buy Your Mushrooms?

I sell my mushrooms at restaurants and grocery stores. So they can directly buy the fresh produce from there. To get my dry Shiitake mushrooms and mushroom seasoning, people can order them online from Tiger Mushroom Farms.com.

Where Do You Grow Mushrooms?

I grow Shiitake mushrooms in my house basement and Oyster mushrooms in my spare bedroom.

Any Advice That You Want To Give To Enthusiasts Who Want To Grow Mushrooms?

To grow mushrooms, you need to find a suitable environment. Shiitake mushrooms grow best in a cold climate, so that’s why I grow them in my house basement. Oyster mushrooms need a hot temperature to grow, so I grow them in a spare bedroom. Also, high humidity is required to grow mushrooms.

How Did You Feel When the GCPA Recognised you?

I was honored to be seen as a prodigy. It was fascinating to be among 100 beautiful kids. I feel very glad to be a Global Child Prodigy Awardee.

How Did Your Community React To it?

My community reacted very nicely to it, and they usually support me in all my endeavors.

Did You Come Up With Anything New During the Pandemic?

As we have to be at home during the pandemic, I attended my mushrooms a lot better. During the pandemic, I came up with new seasoning ideas for my mushrooms. I’m also planning to set a community garden.

What Is Your Ambition?

At one of my farmer markets, some people were using a particular currency, which was different from the usual money. So I asked my father why they were using a different currency. He told me that some people don’t have the money to buy fresh produce, so they get special currency from the market, which helps them buy fresh and healthy food. It got me thinking about how many people can’t go to such farmer markets to get new and affordable food, so they go to a food desert to buy food. To improve this condition, I plan to set up a community garden sometime soon, from where people can get healthy food.

What is a Food Desert?

A food desert is a place that has no farm grocery stores from where you can get fresh and affordable food. It’s usually filled with shops like convenience stores and fast-food restaurants and has no new food stores.

Tell Us A Little About Your Mentors

I do have a couple of mentors who help me in entrepreneurship. Two of my mentors came from ‘Back to the Roots’ – the organization from where I bought my mushroom kits. They made me their Junior Brand Ambassador. They help me with entrepreneurship and money-managing. I have one other mentor who’s a motivational speaker. He gives me motivation and helps me with my speaking.

Who Do You Look Up To For Getting Farming Support?

For my mushroom farming aspects, I don’t have a mentor. So I try to improve as much as I can. My father also supports me with it.

Do You Have Any Messages For Parents Who Are Watching You?

I want to say that parents should always support their kids in whatever their kids like doing and want to do. So always be a supportive parent.

Thank you, Te’Lario Watkins II. You are a wonderful person. We wish you all the best for your future. May you get all the success in life.

If you know someone close to you who deserves to be in the next Top 100 Child Prodigies list, amke sure to click here.

Also Read : Te’Lario Watkins II | This 12-Year-Old Owns A Mushroom Farm