Delhi Housewife Starts Growing Keeda Jadi Mushrooms At Her House; Builds A Natural Brand And Clocks Rs 42 Lakh Revenue

You've heard of button mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, and shiitake mushrooms.

But ever heard of Cordyceps Militaris?

Probably not. 

Cordyceps Militaris is a type of medicinal mushroom that is prized for its health benefits.

From enhancing the immune system to improving cardiovascular health and even stamina and endurance, this type of fungi brings a lot to the table. 

In 2018, Suman Sukhija, a housewife who hails from Delhi, heard about Cordyceps Militaris. 

“Someone told me about Cordyceps, which are called keeda jadi mushrooms in Hindi. I decided to grow them at home, build a brand, and offer Cordyceps products to people,” Suman Sukhija, founder of Orange Herb, tells Startup Pedia in an exclusive interview. 

Founded in 2018, Orange Herb began as an indoor farming venture wherein Suman tried growing Cordyceps. Eventually, she scaled up to the successful production of Cordyceps Militaris as well as pure saffron. 

Today, Orange Herb clocks an average annual revenue of Rs 42 lakh. This includes the sale of Cordyceps Militaris as well as saffron. 

HOW IT ALL STARTED 

Hailing from Delhi, Suman Sukhija graduated from Delhi University. Eventually, she got married in a family belonging to Hisar in Haryana. 

“As a woman, I wanted to prioritize my family but also do something of my own. I was drawn to the indoor farming of mushrooms because they could be grown from the comfort and convenience of one's own house,” Suman shares. 

Initially, Suman Sukhija was inclined towards understanding the intricacies of button mushrooms and took official training at a center in Murthal. 

However, midway, she decided to change course and involve herself in Cordyceps Militaris, a medicinal mushroom.

“Keeda Jadi mushrooms interested me more than button mushrooms because of their incredible power to heal the human body and provide immunity and endurance benefits. I took training for growing them indoors and also did a lot of self-study and research on my own,” Suman tells Startup Pedia.

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INITIAL JOURNEY AND CHALLENGES 

Suman Sukhija’s journey started from a 10x10 room in her own house in Hansi, which is located near Hisar in Haryana.  

However, she made a couple of mistakes in the beginning. This was because there weren't many experts to guide her regarding aspects like costs, space, and harvesting. 

“I invested roughly Rs 9 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. The tissue culture, which is like the spawn of Cordyceps, came for about Rs 10,000. The rest of the funds went into setting up double rooms, one dark and one light. Then there were double the machines, double the air conditioners, and double the racks,” Suman explains.

“I had just begun and was relatively new to the field, and didn't know how to optimize costs. Today, I tell people that you can start Cordyceps Militaris indoor farming with just a budget of Rs 4 lakh to Rs 5 lakh,” she adds. 

Initially, Suman also struggled with failed crops. 

But as and when she started gaining expertise, she cracked the entire production cycle of Cordyceps Militaris—from multiplying tissue culture, continuing incubation, the fruiting phase, to finally the harvesting period. 

“The production cycle for this type of medicinal mushroom is roughly 2.5 months to 3 months. This includes everything from culture to harvest and drying,” mushroom entrepreneur Suman shares. 

Finally, Suman harvested close to 5 kilograms of Keeda Jadi mushrooms.

Since the awareness about medicinal mushrooms was almost at a nascent stage back then, selling the output was a challenge.

So instead of approaching wholesale buyers, she started distributing the output in her offline circle for free. 

“This was my first batch, so I treated it as a sample that I could provide to my friends, relatives, and neighbours,” she says. 

When people tried incorporating Cordyceps Militaris in their diets, they noticed a lot of health problems being addressed and eased. 

They returned to Suman for repeat orders, and that is how she started the Orange Herb in 2018. 

 Now I had figured out the way Cordyceps Militaris are to be grown. I began scaling my indoor mushroom farming venture and eventually set up a tissue culture lab as well,” Suman shares. 

In 2019, she produced an output of 5 kilograms. 

By 2022, Orange Herb’s annual output grew to 8 kilograms. 

In 2024, Orange Herb produced a total output of 20 kilograms.

Currently, she sells one kilogram of Keeda Jadi mushrooms for Rs 93,000. 

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ORANGE HERB: A HEALTH-BASED SUPPLEMENT COMPANY

Under Orange Herb, Suman began converting her Keeda Jadi mushroom output into products like health supplements.

Today, her brand offers multiple Cordyceps Militaris-based products like the Cordy-Derma Tea, Shilajit, and capsules. 

In the initial years, Orange Herb made an average of Rs 5 lakh as annual revenue.

But with the rapid expansion of not just the production of Cordyceps Militaris but also the product categories since 2023, Orange Herb has become a trusted health supplement brand that clocks an average of Rs 30 lakh to Rs 40 lakh as annual revenue. (This figure includes only the sale of Cordyceps Militaris). 

Apart from its own website, Suman Sukhija’s health-based brand retails across Amazon, IndiaMART, and Flipkart. 

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SCALING TO SAFFRON

After successfully growing and selling Keeda Jadi mushrooms and its products, indoor farming entrepreneur Suman Sukhija decided to scale to saffron. 

“It's the world's most precious spice and also has a lot of health benefits. I discovered that there's a lot of demand for homegrown, pure saffron,” Suman Sukhija tells Startup Pedia. 

Suman started with a 10x10 room and set up a saffron farming unit fully equipped with the necessary machinery, racks, and air conditioners.

The initial cost of setting everything up came to Rs 7 to 8 lakh. 

In 2022, Suman’s saffron unit produced an output of 500 grams of pure saffron, which she sold for Rs 600 per gram. 

“My first revenue from saffron was approximately Rs 3 lakh,” she says. 

Now, each year, she grows saffron during the months of August to November and produces 2 kilograms every production cycle. 

“At Orange Herb, I sell it for Rs 600 per gram, and customers are happy to pay that price. We are lab-tested and have absolutely no adulteration,” the indoor farming entrepreneur confirms. 

Currently, Suman’s average annual revenue from saffron comes to a figure of approximately Rs 12 lakh. 

“When students come to me to get trained in indoor saffron farming, I tell them that the only issue is the natural multiplication of saffron and then optimizing the production. I teach them every detail in my training course,” farming entrepreneur Suman Sukhija says. 

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LOOKING AHEAD 

With an average annual revenue of Rs 42 lakh (including Cordyceps Militaris and saffron), Orange Herb is soon looking to enter the offline space of retail stores and supermarkets. 

In FY26, Suman is targeting an annual revenue of Rs 1 crore. 

Suman Sukhija is now venturing into the realm of microgreens and advocates for their inclusion in the Indian diet. 

Since 2018, she has trained more than 500 people in the field of indoor farming of medicinal mushrooms as well as saffron. 

“I was just an ordinary housewife when I started. Indoor farming has given my life a new purpose that doesn't interfere with my responsibilities towards my family. With Orange Herb, I aim to build a health-based brand that not just sells healthy supplements but also teaches people how to grow them at home from scratch,” Suman Sukhija signs off.