Monaghan Mushrooms, Selby, Sept 2010

Explored with jST

Thanks to wirelessmast for bringing this place to my attention.

After giving up teaching in 1979 Ronnie Wilson spent the next 18 months planning the opening of his mushroom company Monaghan Mushrooms, which opened in 1981. Originally dealing solely in jarred and canned mushrooms the company expanded in 1986 to pack hand picked mushrooms for the UK market. In 1994 the company expanded again by acquiring Middlebrook Mushrooms and they started growing their own mushrooms in Yorkshire, Somerset and Leicestershire and in 2004 merged with Carbury Mushrooms and gained this farm just outside of Selby. It was originally used by Carbury as a compost production facility, but after the merger they started growing their own. They supplied, among others, Tesco's, Sainsbury's, Morrison's and Somerfield.

The site was closed in August 2009 and has been hit by 5 arson attacks since. You can learn more about Monaghan Mushrooms here (including how mushrooms are grown commercially), you can learn how to grow your own mushrooms here and play a fun game about mushrooms here.

I think I've said mushroom enough now, so on with some pics!

Thanks for looking

Looks a good explore mate. Loving the 'labs' & 'engineering' shots

Thanks for bringing this to our attention Kook. Hadn't thought about producing mushrooms on an industrial scale until seeing this post.

Not sure why it closed either, as the parent company appears to be still active. Couldn't find anything on their site about it.

Cheers dev, I hadn't thought about growing mushrooms comercially either! The site was HUGE as well. I guess after the merger they had enough sites to meet demand. There was apparently talk of reopening the site as an organic mushroom farm. The locals objected on the grounds that it smelt really bad due to the production of the pesticides. Monaghan countered by saying that the ferterliser would be natural and brought in, so it wouldn't smell as bad. I guess nothing happened with this and now the site is beyond repair I reckon, it would prob be cheaper to just start over.

Great job there, i really must find the time to do an explore myself (since im practically next door!)

Did you take a look at the smaller section of the site, to the north? Ive been through that section, but didnt have a camera at the time. Likewise the 'caretakers cottage' and outbuildings ive already done but again had no camera!

Im intruiged as to whether you took a look in the first row of growing tunnels facing rhe road? they all seemed to be crammed with dumped furniture last time i looked.


There was a plan a while back to turn the site into a waste composting site, which was rejected by the locals due to possible odours (although they dont seem bothered by the pig breeding center!)

didn't see the smaller section to the north, went through the caretakers cottage though, thats where we found mushrooms and toadstools!

We went in some of the sheds on the first row and the amount of furniture is very odd, especially where there is loads of mattresses all the same.