• Agar Agar Powder Kai Kai Farm
  • Agar Agar Powder Kai Kai Farm
1 2

Agar Agar Powder

Agar Agar Powder

$16.00
$16.00
Sale Sold out
Taxes included.
Size

Most growers hit a ceiling when they rely on other people’s genetics. Agar Agar work is how you take control of your own.

Agar Agar is the medium that unlocks the laboratory side of mushroom cultivation — the tool that lets you germinate spores, clone fruiting bodies, isolate clean genetics, detect contamination before it reaches your substrate, and bank cultures for future grows. Once you work with agar, it becomes a permanent part of how you cultivate.

This is lab-grade agar powder sourced from Japan, packaged in Australia. Gel strength: 1,000 g/cm² — meaningfully firmer than standard food-grade agar (typically 700–900 g/cm²), giving you plates that hold up during transfers, cut cleanly for wedges and sectors, and stay stable across the full incubation period.

What makes this agar the right choice

1,000 g/cm² gel strength

Premium above standard grade

Standard food-grade agar typically gels at 700–900 g/cm². At 1,000 g/cm², this agar produces plates that are noticeably firmer — they hold their shape when you transfer wedges and sectors, resist cracking during manipulation, and stay stable across longer incubation periods without softening. The higher gel strength also means you can pour slightly thinner plates without compromising structural integrity.

Lab grade, Japanese source

Consistent purity, packaged in Australia

Sourced from Japan — the world’s benchmark for agar quality — and packed here in Australia. Lab grade means tightly controlled purity and consistency: no batch-to-batch variation in gel strength, no unexpected impurities affecting plate clarity, and no competing microbial load to compromise your cultures before you’ve even inoculated.

20g per litre — efficient and economical

200–250 plates per 100g bag

At 20g per litre of media solution, poured at 20–25mL per 90mm plate, a single 100g bag yields 200–250 petri dishes. The 200g bag extends to 400–500 plates. For context, that’s months of regular agar work from a single purchase. A little goes a very long way.

Resealable packaging

Stays fresh between pours

Agar powder is hygroscopic — it absorbs moisture from the air and clumps if left exposed. The resealable pouch keeps the powder dry and free-flowing between uses, maintaining precise measurement accuracy for every pour. Squeeze out excess air when resealing, and it will remain in perfect condition for years.

What agar work makes possible

  • Seeing contamination on a plate before it destroys an entire bag of substrate — agar is your early warning system
  • Selecting the fastest, densest, most vigorous mycelium sectors from a mixed culture and isolating the genetics you want
  • Cloning high-performing fruiting bodies — taking a tissue sample from an exceptional specimen and capturing those genetics permanently
  • Banking cultures in the fridge for months, removing the dependency on buying new spawn for every grow
  • Germinating spores from a print under controlled conditions and observing growth from day one
  • The dramatic improvement in contamination rates that comes from working with clean, isolated cultures rather than bulk-inoculated substrate

What agar actually is — and why gel strength matters: Agar is a complex polysaccharide extracted from red algae (primarily Gelidium and Gracilaria species). Unlike gelatin, it is plant-derived, sets at room temperature and remains solid up to around 85°C — which means it stays firm during incubation and doesn’t melt when plates warm up near a heat mat. When dissolved in water and cooled, it forms a transparent, porous gel matrix that allows gas exchange (oxygen in, CO² out) while preventing liquid movement — creating ideal conditions for surface mycelium growth.

Gel strength (g/cm²) in practical terms: Gel strength is measured by the weight required to rupture the gel surface — higher is firmer. At 1,000 g/cm², this agar produces plates that withstand the physical manipulation of mycology work: scalpel cuts through cultures without tearing, wedge transfers lift cleanly, and sectors can be moved intact. Lower gel strength agar (700–800 g/cm²) produces softer plates that can tear during transfers or deform in warm conditions — a minor inconvenience for casual use but a meaningful problem when you’re doing precision isolation work.

Agar media recipes

All recipes per 1 litre of water · yields 40–50 × 90mm petri dishes · autoclave at 15 PSI / 121°C for 20 minutes

MEA — Malt Extract Agar

The standard. Suitable for almost every species and application.

Most popular

Per litre

20g agar agar powder

15g light malt extract

1L water

The workhorse of mycology media. Malt extract provides a complete carbohydrate and trace mineral profile that supports vigorous mycelial growth across almost every cultivated species. Use MEA as your default medium for culture expansion, spore germination and general agar work.

Good for: All oyster varieties · lion’s mane · shiitake · pioppino · chestnut · general culture expansion

💡 Supercharge MEA: Add 2–5g of Nutritional Yeast per litre to MEA for a nitrogen boost that drives faster, denser mycelial growth. Particularly effective for aggressive colonisers and species showing slow or thin growth on standard MEA.

PDA — Potato Dextrose Agar

Natural starch-based medium. Excellent for cloning and tissue work.

Per litre

20g agar agar powder

200g potatoes (peeled)

20g white sugar or dextrose

Top up to 1L water

Boil 200g diced potato in 1L water for 20 minutes. Strain well, keeping the liquid. Top up to 1L. Add sugar and agar. Autoclave as normal. PDA’s starchy, natural nutrient profile is particularly suited to tissue culture from fresh fruiting bodies, and many cultivators prefer it for species that can be finicky on malt-based media.

Good for: Fruiting body cloning · shiitake · reishi · species that prefer lower-nitrogen media

LMEA — Light Malt Extract Agar

Low-nutrition isolation medium. Preferred for sector isolation and slow species.

Per litre

20g agar agar powder

10g light malt extract

1L water

Half the malt content of standard MEA. The reduced nutrition slows both mycelium and competing organisms, giving you more time to observe and isolate clean sectors before contamination overtakes the plate. Preferred by experienced cultivators for isolation work where speed of growth is less important than clarity of observation.

Good for: Sector isolation · slow colonisers · spore germination · detecting mixed cultures · enoki · reishi

Our Light Malt Extract is available separately and sized to pair with these agar bags — 100g LME + 100g agar covers the same number of plates.

How to prepare your plates

Mix → autoclave → cool → pour → set → store

1
Combine dry ingredients and water in a heat-safe borosilicate glass flask or mason jar. No need to dissolve first — the autoclave does it. Stir briefly to distribute the powder.
2
Autoclave or pressure cook at 15 PSI / 121°C for 20 minutes. The agar will fully dissolve and the media will be sterilised in a single step. Use a loose lid or foil covering — not a sealed cap, which can cause pressure build-up.
3
Cool to approximately 50°C before pouring. At 50°C, the flask should feel very warm but holdable with bare hands. If you pour too hot, condensation floods your plates. If you wait too long, the agar begins to set in the flask. Aim for the window where it flows freely but is no longer steaming heavily.
4
Work inside a still air box or under a flow hood. Pour 20–25mL per 90mm petri dish. Replace lids gently — do not press down firmly as this traps air bubbles. Work quickly and consistently; the agar will start setting within minutes of pouring.
5
Leave undisturbed for 15–20 minutes to set fully. Do not stack or move plates during setting. Once firm, flip upside down so any condensation that forms drips toward the lid rather than pooling on the agar surface.
6
Store in a sealed bag or Parafilm-wrapped in the fridge. Poured plates keep for up to 2–3 months refrigerated. Bring to room temperature for 1–2 hours before inoculating to avoid condensation on the agar surface during use.

Where agar fits in your cultivation workflow

Application What you’re doing Best media
Spore germination Germinating spores from a print or syringe to observe and select germination points MEA or LMEA
Culture expansion Growing out mycelium from a small inoculation point to fill plates for grain transfers MEA
Contamination screening Plating a sample to check for bacterial or fungal contamination before committing to substrate MEA (bacteria visible) or LMEA
Sector isolation Identifying and cutting the fastest, densest mycelium sectors from a mixed or contaminated culture LMEA (slower growth = easier observation)
Fruiting body cloning Taking internal tissue from a fresh mushroom and growing it out to capture and preserve genetics MEA or PDA
Culture banking Storing genetics long-term in the fridge between grows, eliminating dependency on purchased spawn MEA or LMEA (refrigerated)

How many plates per bag?

Bag size Litres of media Plates at 20mL/plate Plates at 25mL/plate
100g 5 litres ~250 plates ~200 plates
200g 10 litres ~500 plates ~400 plates

Based on 20g agar per litre of media solution, poured into 90mm petri dishes. Thicker pours (25mL) extend plate depth and shelf life; thinner pours (20mL) maximise yield and suit short-term use.

Storage

Dry powder
Cool, dark, dry location. Reseal the pouch tightly after each use, squeezing out excess air. Stored correctly, agar powder keeps indefinitely — years, not months. Do not refrigerate the dry powder (humidity risk on opening).
Poured plates
Refrigerated, stacked upside down, in a sealed bag or individually Parafilm-wrapped. Optimal shelf life 30–45 days; usable up to 2–3 months if uncontaminated and not dried out.
Prepared media
Autoclaved but unpoured media can be re-melted once by gentle heating (do not re-autoclave — this degrades the agar structure). Keep sealed and warm (above 40°C) until ready to pour, then work quickly.

Choosing your size

Size Plates Best for
100g 200–250 plates Starting out with agar work · hobbyist growers · enough for a year of regular home lab use
200g 400–500 plates Established lab workflows · multiple species in rotation · commercial cultivators maintaining culture libraries

Complete your agar setup

💧 Light Malt Extract →

The nutrient source for MEA and LMEA. Sized to match these agar bags — 100g LME pairs perfectly with a 100g agar bag for a complete plate-pouring setup.

🌱 Nutritional Yeast →

Add 2–5g per litre to MEA to boost nitrogen content and drive faster, denser mycelial growth. The upgrade for growers who want more from their plates.

Why Customers Love Us

  • Australian Owned
  • Family Business
  • Sustainability
View full details

Customers are saying

4.86 ★ (100)
Verified