Plenary Speakers

Boey Tze Zhou

Chief Executive Officer

Fungitech Sdn. Bhd. (MALAYSIA)

Boey Tze Zhou's journey into the mushroom industry began at the age of 18, despite having the academic prowess to pursue a different path. With a CGPA of 4.0 in his pre-university exams, he chose to follow his passion for agriculture, enrolling in the Agricultural Science program at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). Graduating with First Class Honours and receiving the prestigious Royal Education Award from the Sultan of Selangor, Boey demonstrated a commitment to both academic excellence and his career aspirations. In 2012, he founded his first mushroom farm, where he led groundbreaking innovations in cultivation techniques, biomaterials, and functional foods. Over the years, his work has earned him global recognition, including invitations to speak at the 2024 World Mushroom Conference. Boey has also partnered with institutions like UiTM and the Sarawak Biodiversity Center to advance mushroom research and has published several scientific papers. His accolades include the Penang Top Young Agropreneur Award (2016, 2019), the Best Penang Organic Farm Award (2018), and recognition as one of the Top Ten Outstanding Penang Youths (2024). Additionally, his farm was the first in Penang to achieve Malaysia Good Agriculture Practice - Pesticide Free (MyGAP-PF) certification in 2024.

Bhushan Shrestha

Associate Professor

Organic Agriculture Program
Madan Bhandari University Of Science & Technology (NEPAL)

Dr. Shrestha has more than 25 years of experience in the study of entomopathogenic fungi (Cordyceps and allied species) in South Korea and Nepal. Recently, a new fungal genus name ‘Bhushaniella’ was established in his honor for his contribution to the knowledge of arthropod-pathogenic fungi. He has been invited for presentation of his work in China, Mexico, Thailand, Peru and Vietnam, and has authored and co-authored 70+ peer-reviewed scientific articles. He has also supervised and co-supervised students in Nepal, Brazil and Mexico. His current responsibility at Madan Bhandari University of Science and Technology (MBUST) in Chitlang, Thaha Municipality-9, Nepal is to develop course work and research topics on edible and medicinal mushrooms for Graduate Program in Organic Agriculture. He has extensively travelled Chitlang and surrounding areas in connection with the survey of local agricultural genetic resources, crop diseases, and soil fertility and management. His research interests include: domestication and utilization of native mushrooms of Nepal; mushroom taxonomy, diversity, ethnomycology and biogeography of wild edible mushrooms of Nepal; antimicrobial properties of mushrooms; natural compounds of medicinal mushrooms; authentication, traditional use, lab culture and cultivation of Yarsagumba (Ophiocordyceps sinensis); application of entomopathogenic fungi as biological control agents of insect pests; biological control of disease and pest in mushroom farms; biofertilizer development from spent mushroom substrate etc. He is a peer reviewer for mycology-related journals and has reviewed nearly 50 selected articles.