RUSHVILLE, Ind. — A Hoosier company is looking to take advantage of what they are saying is an untapped market in farming.

Cormo USA has set up shop in Rushville and is planning to use crop residue, such as chopped corn stocks, and turning then into sustainable products. CEO Stefan Muehlbauer tells Inside Indiana Business it’s Indiana operation will focus on making a cheaper peat moss substitute for mushroom farmers.

Mushroom farmers, like in Pennsylvania for example, use imported black or blonde peat moss as fertilizer for growing mushrooms. But they have to import it from places like the Baltic countries of Europe or Canada and it can get expensive.

He said the concept is to buy crop residue from farmers after they harvest their normal crops and turn it into a peat moss substitute, which they can sell to mushroom farmers in Pennsylvania. Muehlbauer said these farmers will jump at this alternative because it is cheaper, easier to get, and more affective.

“When can completely erase black peat moss from the equation and cut back on blonde peat moss as well, our product has shown about 30-percent faster growth,” said Muelhbauer. “Mushroom farming, just like any other farming, operates on very slim margins. So we see a lot of interest from industrial operations that say ‘hey, we don’t have to import black peat moss anymore at ridiculous costs’.”

Muehlbauer added they also plan to make a foam-like construction material about corn stover and crop residue.

This isn’t a new concept in using crop residue for making products. In other states like Iowa, companies do the same thing to create cellulosic ethanol or livestock feed.

Muehlbaur said he and his company are looking forward to trying out there method for the first time on a large scale after farmers bring in their crops in the fall.