General FAQs

I am not completely satisfied with the product, can I get my money back?

Yes. We offer a money back guarantee if you are not satisfied with your product within the first 7 days of receiving it. You will need to contact our customer service team at hello@lifecykel.com and send the full product/set back to our address at your expense.

Are your products safe to be consumed by children?

There is currently not enough research available to safely conclude mushroom supplements are safe for use by children. For further guidance, please consult your doctor or pediatrician. Thank you for your understanding.

I am pregnant, can I consume the liquid extracts?

There is currently not enough research available to safely conclude mushroom supplements are safe for use during pregnancy. For further guidance, please consult your doctor. Thank you for your understanding.

I am allergic to mushrooms, is it safe for me to consume your liquid extracts or other mushroom products?

People allergic to mushrooms shouldn’t consume this product. For further guidance, please consult your doctor. Thank you for your understanding.

What benefits am I getting with the liquid extracts and your other functional mushroom products?

As mushroom farmers our expertise is the cultivation of mushrooms. Life Cykel takes great pride in producing the highest possible quality products. We recommend using https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov as a source of research conducted by varying international research institutes and universities. Be sure to use the specie name for your search. Additionally, for further advice we recommend consulting your doctor. Our products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Thank you for your interest in the wonderful world of mushrooms.

Can I take your products when I'm using prescription medications?

As mushroom growers this is not our area of expertise. Any medical related questions are best answered by your local GP or physician.

Liquid Extracts FAQs

Double extracts? Are they the equivalent strength to powders? The ratio is 10:1 on powders, but not the extracts. How does that work?

Powders and liquid extracts are made using different processes.

Our powders are 10:1 which means that 10kg of mushroom material has been used to make 1kg of powder. The powder is made using a spray-drying process.

Our liquid extracts are 1:2 which means that 1kg of mushroom material is used to make 2L of liquid extract. The liquid extracts are made using a double extraction method (water and alcohol based). This double liquid extract ensures that both water soluble compounds (mainly polysaccharides like beta-glucans) and alcohol soluble compounds (mainly antioxidants such as triterpenoids) are present in the end product and bioavailable for the consumer.

We believe that the liquid extracts contain a range of full spectrum compounds acting synergistically together while powders are an isolate of single compounds.

For your own purpose, we advise you to test the difference - some people prefer the powders, others prefer the liquids.

Can I use different extracts at the same time?

Absolutely, feel free to use different extracts together. We encourage people to try different combinations of extracts to see what suits their needs best.

What is the starch content in your liquid extracts?

Our liquid extracts contain less than 1% of starch. This result tells us that we can separate most of the grain parts (mainly starch) from the mycelium with our patent pending extraction process.

Your label tells me there is alcohol in your extracts; how much and why?

As one serve is 2ml, there is 0.6ml of alcohol in one serve. This is the equivalent of drinking 12ml of a standard 5% alcohol beer or 5.2ml of a standard white wine restaurant glass size (150ml) of 11.5% of alcohol. This is a very small quantity of alcohol with no intoxicating effects. In Australia, one standard drink is equivalent to any drink containing 10 grams of alcohol.

1 serve of extract is equivalent to 0.6ml alcohol = 0.4g of alcohol = 4% of a standard drink

Alcohol is used to extract the alcohol soluble compounds (mainly antioxidants such as triterpenoids) to make them bioavailable for the consumer. Without using alcohol in our extracts, you would only have the water-soluble compounds.

Are all your liquid extracts suitable for vegetarians and vegan diets?

Yes, our liquid extracts are vegetarian and vegan, containing no animal-based ingredients.

How should I store the liquid extracts?

Our products are shelf stable.

Extracts used regularly can be stored at room temperature but if you plan to not use them regularly once opened, we recommend refrigerating the bottles to increase longevity.

Which extracts are made from native Australian strains?

Our Lion’s Mane Hericium corraloides and Turkey Tail Trametes versicolor extracts are made from strains growing natively in Australia.

How many beta glucans are there in your extract?

Until we can get precise laboratory results on beta-glucans content, we have decided to not promote them on our extracts.

Have you had your lion’s mane extract tested for specific beta glucans, terpenes, erinacines, hericenones and polyphenols levels?

Beta glucan and terpenes laboratory testings are in their infancy and so we do not believe in the validity of these markers currently. While we know beta glucans and terpenes are important the science is unclear. The Australian native Lion’s Mane strain we are using does not contain erinacines and hericenones but instead contains similar compounds called corralocins.

And what do you mean by flavouring on the ingredients. Are you using artificial flavouring agents?

This is a requirement from the current FSANZ standard regulations. We do not use artificial flavouring agents in our liquid extracts. Our liquid extracts are made from organic ingredients and wild harvested Kakadu Plum.

Can I still fast when using your liquid extracts?

Our Liquid Extracts contain alcohol or vegetable glycerin, which are calorie dense. Therefore this will break a fast.

The extract doesn’t have a detectable mushroom taste. It is easy to take because of its mild flavour but just wondering about effectiveness?

Our liquid extracts are purified using pharmaceutical grade equipment which results in a clear purified colour. This differs from other companies extracts, which are made without purification steps, resulting in a more pigmented extract with a strong pungent flavour that is not palatable.

Our extract are made from 70% of purified water extract and 30% of alcohol extract purified extract combined together.

Why do you use Kakadu Plum in your extracts?

The native Australian Kakadu Plum infused within the mushrooms brings a sweet taste to the extracts while enhancing the effect of the mushrooms.

Do you have a recommended schedule for when to take the extracts?

Here's an example of a day in the life of a mushroom biohacker. Inspired by Dave Asprey’s personal use:

AM: Cordyceps and Turkey Tail - add to coffee, tea or water
PM: Reishi and Lion's Mane - add to evening tea or water

Shiitake is perfect to have at any time of the day.

* Please note: Some of our community prefer to take Lion's Mane in the morning. Be sure to try out for yourself to find what works best for you.

Are your extracts made from pure mycelium or it is made from mycelium on grain or liquid culture?

Our extract is made from a combination of fruiting bodies and mycelium. Our liquid extracts contain less than 1% of starch. This result proves that we can currently separate more than 99% of the grain parts (mainly starch) from the mycelium with our proprietary extraction process that has been lodged with the patent office.

How much vitamin C is in your extracts?

We are using the Kakadu plum mostly as a natural flavouring. We are not making any claims on the vitamin C content of our extract. We do believe the formulation is amazing for optimising your day and we receive many positive reviews about this on a daily basis

My dropper doesn't have 'ml' marked on it, how many ml's are in a dropper?

Half a dropper full is approximately 1ml, you can use this as a guide for the recommended serving size (2ml)

What percentage of Kakadu Plum is in your extract

Our extraction processes and formulas are part of our company's IP, which is within our patents lodged.

Are there any calories in your extracts?

Our extracts are identified under the category of flavourings. The calories involved are very low.

Does each native ingredient come from an indigenous owned company?

All native ingredients have been sourced through our indigenous partnership with BUR'AN Australia, a social venture corporation with a defined strategy and purpose, focusing on unique long term sustainable socioeconomic indigenous initiatives building cultural bridges of understanding amongst local and global communities. Each sale contributes to their respective communities.

Do you use fruiting bodies or mycelium?

Our liquid extracts are made using fruiting bodies and mycelium as we believe both have properties that are beneficial in this bioavailable form. Our liquid extracts contain less than 0.5% of starch. This result proves that we can separate up to 99% of all starch coming from the substrate we are cultivating the mycelium on. This is made possible with our proprietary patented extraction process. With our great global team of scientists that include a biotechnology engineer, nanotechnologist, microbiologist, Mycologist and food scientist we are constantly refining and optimising our technology to ensure we are growing the best quality fruiting bodies & mycelium and using the best extraction processes.

Our cordyceps, chaga and reishi extracts are grown and engineered in the USA as we are not allowed to grow these strains in Australia under the current biosecurity laws.

All mushroom fruiting bodies used for our extracts are produced by us, we do not use Chinese based ingredients in our liquid extracts. Most of our fruiting bodies are grown on hardwood sawdust, cordyceps being an exception as it is grown on a substrate based on organic brown rice.

How to grow FAQs

I am not a very good gardener. Is it difficult to grow these mushrooms?

Rest assured the hard part is over. Life Cykel Mushroom Boxes are designed for accessing fresher food with simplicity so just spray, harvest, eat and repeat!

Where should I grow my mushrooms?

All you need is an indoor space that will get fresh air and a good amount of light, so close to a window but not in direct sunlight. Indirect sunlight will help the mushroom caps develop to their full potential. Once you see the tiny pinheads pop out, they’ll double in size each day! Again, be generous with your watering.

When to harvest?

As soon as you notice that your mushrooms aren’t doubling in size each day, you can pick off the entire crop. A brown ring around the edge of the mushroom cap is key indicator that your mushrooms are ready to harvest!

How long can I store my mushrooms for?

It's best to pick and eat them straight away. However they can be stored in the fridge for 5-7 days. If they do dry out somewhat, using them in a curry or other liquid will rehydrate them. Did you know gourmet mushrooms are rarely found in grocery stores because they’re extremely delicate and have a short shelf-life? So it's best to grow your mushrooms at home :)

How do I store them?

It is best to store them in a paper bag in the refrigerator. In the paper bag their excess moisture is absorbed by the bag, keeping it off your mushrooms but close enough to retain some moisture!

How many mushrooms can I grow?

Each crop varies in size but you can grow at least 2 crops from one box. So far the going record has been 7 crops from one mushroom farm! Email us at hello@lifecykel.com if you beat the record or if your mushrooms are looking particularly beautiful. Also don't forget to tag us in your social media pictures - you might be this month's Homegrown Hero!

What do I do with my harvested mushrooms?

Our recipe page provides some gourmet tips on best enjoying the Life Cykel experience – https://lifecykel.com/recipes/

My mushroom box grew a beautiful first crop but my second crop hasn't come through - what am I doing wrong?

Don’t worry. Patience is key! Each subsequent crop will take several weeks to begin growing. Regular moisture is the key.

What happens if my box doesn't grow any mushrooms?

If you have tried all the above tips and are still having any troubles growing your mushrooms then we are here to help! Please send us some details to hello@lifecykel.com so one of our mushroom experts can put you on on the right path to success. Pictures are always helpful. We want all of our customers to have a happy growing experience so we will get back to you as soon as we can.

I'm going away for a few days - will my kit be okay without me?

Ideally you should mist daily, but if you are going to be away, place your box in a naturally damp or humid spot whilst you’re gone. Right next to the sink and away from heat sources for example. You could place the box on a little stand in a tray of water and as the water evaporates it will keep the environment around the kit nice and humid.

What should I do with my bag once finished growing?

Oyster mushroom substrate is packed with nutrients so it makes for a very valuable soil amendment. Be sure to empty the bags contents onto your favourite fruit tree or plant in the garden and watch it take off.

How long can I store my kit before I need to start growing it?

You can store your kit for up to 3 months after you’ve received it. Store it in a dark spot at room temperature (10-20C), and then continue as per the instructions in the box.

You mentioned them being healthy. How healthy?

Oyster mushrooms are extremely healthy given that one-third of their dry weight is protein. They are rich in vitamin B vitamins, calcium, phosphorous and iron. This is why they are commonly referred to as the vegetarian steak.

What's the white stuff inside the bag?

This white layer is the mycelium, or ‘mushroom roots’. It has grown across and throughout the coffee grounds and has completely colonised it before we send it out to you. It’s this mycelium that gathers up the nutrients and uses them to produce delicious Oyster Mushrooms when the bag is opened.