Michael Hatfield holds a lion's mane mushroom. 

Flyway Family Farm's housemade mushroom jerky is made using oyster mushrooms, which can be seen behind the jerky.

Andouille, Flyway Family Farm's beloved pet pig.

Chestnut mushrooms at Flyway Family Farm.

Michael Hatfield grew up thinking he hated mushrooms. Little did he know, mushrooms would grow to play a large part in his life. Hatfield’s own love for mushrooms came out of a mushroom hunting trip with his friends where he tried a morel for the first time. After that, he was hooked. 

As it turned out, the spot he first went mushroom hunting was right down the road from where he would one day start his own farm, Flyway Family Farm, in Makanda, Illinois, where he now produces hundreds of pounds of mushrooms each week with his family. Oh, and his first date with his wife? They went mushroom foraging together. 

Michael Hatfield in his mushroom shed. 

“I thought I was just gonna continue school until I finally got my doctorate and be a forestry professor or something, but the mushrooms kept grabbing me and pulling me further down the rabbit hole of not being able to leave them behind,” Hatfield says. “Every time I learn something new, it's like I get more fascinated and want to learn more.” 

Driving up the gravel driveway to Flyway Farm, all you see is green. A small lake sits beside the house and sheds, and several farm dogs roam the 6-acre property, along with a beloved pet pig, Andouille, who can typically be found chomping on dandelions. The climate-controlled mushroom growing shed is lined with tall shelving units that are chock-full of mushrooms growing from isolated cultures out of bags. The shed is kept at a crisp 60°F and between 85 and 90 percent humidity, and everything that enters the shed and touches the mushrooms is religiously sterilized to prevent contamination. 

Here, you can find mushrooms of all shapes and sizes: Among many others, you’ll see the white and furry exterior of the lion’s mane, the smooth blue, pink and gold oyster mushrooms and the stout, brown chestnut mushrooms. These are just a few of the 20 different varieties of mushrooms grown at Flyway Farm.

Hatfield compares people’s wide dislike of mushrooms to someone hating all fruit just because they don’t like bananas. 

“If you think you don't like mushrooms, you probably haven't tried very many, because there's a mushroom out there and a way to cook them out there that most people will like,” Hatfield says.

Each mushroom has a different flavor and texture; for example, oyster mushrooms are delicate and sweet with a little nuttiness, and lion’s mane is rich and flaky, often used as a  vegan substitute for crab meat. 

Golden oysters at Flyway Family Farm. 

But Flyw ay Farm doesn’t just grow mushrooms – it also uses them to create a plethora of products, some of which you might not expect. The Hatfields make mushroom jerky, which tastes exceptionally similar to beef jerky and comes in flavors like orange-ginger, teriyaki, original and chili-lime. They also produce Asian-pickled shiitake, mushroom seasoning salt, dried and ground-up mushrooms and mushroom double extracts, which have purported health benefits. 

Flyway Farm recently added a new, larger shed, which will centralize the business into one space and include a commercial kitchen, allowing it to increase the amount of mushroom-based products it makes and sells. It should double its operation, increasing mushroom production to 1,200 pounds per week. 

You can find Flyway Farm’s mushrooms at the Carbondale Farmers’ Market, Urbana’s Market, Vine Street Market in O’Fallon, Illinois, and in dishes at several local southern Illinois restaurants and Grand Center’s Commonwealth restaurant.

Flyway Family Farm, 2060 Cedar Point Ln., Makanda, Illinois, 618.319.2168, flywayfamilyfarm.com

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Charlotte Renner is an editorial intern at Feast Magazine and a senior journalism student at Webster University. Her hobbies include hiking with her two dogs and fiancé, going to live music events and listening to true crime podcasts.

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Michael Hatfield holds a lion's mane mushroom. 

Golden oysters at Flyway Family Farm. 

Flyway Family Farm's housemade mushroom jerky is made using oyster mushrooms, which can be seen behind the jerky.

Andouille, Flyway Family Farm's beloved pet pig.

Michael Hatfield in his mushroom shed. 

Chestnut mushrooms at Flyway Family Farm.