Why Hifas da Terra Is Different: The Science, People and Research Behind the Mushroom Biotech
Why Hifas da Terra Is Different: The Science, People and Research Behind the Mushroom Biotech
Walk into almost any health shop today and you will find Reishi, Lion’s Mane, Cordyceps and other mushroom supplements competing for attention.
The labels may look similar. The mushroom names may be identical. The prices, however, can be dramatically different.
So what actually separates one mushroom company from another?
When we began looking closely at Hifas da Terra, one difference became increasingly difficult to ignore: this is not a supplement brand that simply decided mushrooms were fashionable.
Its story begins with biology, mycology and research.
And more than 25 years later, research still appears to sit at the centre of the company.
From a University Project in Galicia to a Biotechnology Company
Hifas da Terra grew out of the work of Dr Catalina Fernández de Ana Portela, a Galician biologist and mycologist.
Her relationship with fungi began long before the company existed.
Hifas da Terra’s own history describes a family environment in which mushrooms had been cultivated since the 1970s. Catalina’s father, Francisco de Ana Magán, was a respected researcher in mycology and plant pathology, so fungi, science and the natural world were part of her environment from childhood.
Her own university work in biology ultimately became the seed from which Hifas da Terra developed in Pontevedra, Galicia.
That origin matters.
Hifas da Terra did not begin as a conventional supplement company buying mushroom powders and building a brand around them. Its roots were in understanding fungi themselves: how they grow, which strains matter, what compounds they contain and how those compounds can be extracted, analysed and studied.
The company has since developed into a biotechnology group working across human health, veterinary applications, biotechnology and environmental projects.
The Scientist Behind the Company
Today, Dr Catalina Fernández de Ana Portela remains founder and CEO of Hifas da Terra.
The company’s leadership also includes Dr Esteban Sinde Stompel, President and Chief Research & Innovation Officer, while the wider scientific team includes professionals from disciplines such as biology, pharmacy, medicine and oncology.
Catalina’s academic background did not stop with biology and mycology.
In 2022, she completed a doctoral thesis at the University of Santiago de Compostela within its Doctoral Programme in Clinical Research in Medicine.
Her doctoral research focused on:
Mycotherapy applied in integrative oncology: the application of medicinal mushroom extracts in colorectal cancer to improve quality of life and patient prognosis.
This is particularly relevant when considering a company working with functional and medicinal mushrooms.
The business is being led by people whose academic and professional careers are directly connected to studying fungi and their potential biological applications.
62% of Profits Reinvested in Research & Development
Perhaps one of the most striking figures associated with Hifas da Terra is not a beta-glucan concentration or extraction ratio.
It is 62%.
According to Hifas da Terra’s current research information, the company reinvests 62% of its profits into research and development.
The company also reports more than 25 active R&D projects, more than 15 active clinical studies and collaboration with more than 200 multidisciplinary experts.
Dr Catalina Fernández de Ana Portela has described this philosophy as more than a commercial strategy. In interviews, she has explained that investing heavily in R&D is viewed as a responsibility to science and to the people who use the company’s products.
For customers, this tells us something important.
A significant proportion of the money generated by the business is being reinvested into understanding, testing and developing mushroom science rather than simply expanding a catalogue of supplements.
But Are They Really Conducting Clinical Research?
This is where it becomes important to look beyond company marketing.
The answer is yes.
One important example is research involving Mico-Digest 2.0 and patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer.
The study was designed as a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind clinical trial examining whether supplementation before colorectal cancer surgery influenced postoperative complications and several secondary measures, including inflammatory markers and the gut microbiome.
The study protocol was published in the scientific literature in 2022.
More importantly, the final results were also published in 2025 in the peer-reviewed journal Biomedicines and indexed by PubMed, the database maintained by the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
Researchers from hospitals, the Galicia Sur Health Research Institute, universities and Hifas da Terra were among the authors.
What Did the Colorectal Cancer Trial Actually Find?
The study included 46 patients who met the inclusion criteria. Twenty-seven received Mico-Digest 2.0 and nineteen received placebo.
Importantly, the researchers did not find a statistically significant overall reduction in postoperative complications between the two groups.
The study did, however, report significant changes in certain immune-related measurements and in gut microbiota composition.
The researchers also acknowledged an important limitation: the study did not achieve the originally calculated sample size.
Why include this in an article about why we consider the company credible?
Because scientific credibility is not built by pretending that every clinical study produces a dramatic result.
The existence of a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled human trial, its publication in scientific literature and transparent reporting of both findings and limitations are more meaningful than dramatic marketing claims.
The published paper also declares that several authors were employees of Hifas da Terra.
That does not automatically invalidate a study, but it is information that responsible readers deserve to know.
What About Cancer Research More Broadly?
Hifas da Terra is genuinely involved in oncology-related research, but this must never be confused with saying that mushroom supplements treat or cure cancer.
Those are two completely different statements.
Alongside its colorectal cancer research, the company has also reported the Microimmunomama project involving women with breast cancer.
The programme was developed in collaboration with the Galicia Sur Health Research Institute and was designed to investigate areas including immune response, microbiota and quality-of-life parameters.
At the time of our research, we found information confirming the programme and clinical research activity, but we did not identify a peer-reviewed final outcome publication comparable to the 2025 colorectal study.
For that reason, this should be regarded as ongoing research rather than proof of clinical effectiveness.
That distinction is extremely important.
Hifas da Terra products are food supplements. They are not cancer medicines and should never replace conventional medical treatment.
What Makes Hifas da Terra’s Quality System Different?
Research is only useful if the product inside the bottle actually matches what is being studied and declared.
This is another area where Hifas da Terra takes a particularly detailed approach.
The company calls its system the Hifas Quality System.
It includes 360° traceability, designed to follow the process from cultivation and raw materials through extraction and finished product.
Hifas da Terra also describes a system of analytical controls that includes assessments of:
- Purity
- Concentration of active biomolecules
- Product stability
- Microbiological quality
- Pesticides
- Heavy metals
- Gluten
The company also uses analytical fingerprints of extracts to help confirm that an extract matches its declared identity and composition.
This is especially relevant in the mushroom supplement market.
Seeing the words Reishi, Lion’s Mane or Cordyceps on a label tells you surprisingly little about the quality, extraction method or actual concentration of the product.
Hifas da Terra frequently goes further by declaring measurable bioactive compounds such as beta-glucans, terpenes or cordycepin, depending on the specific formula.
For us, that level of transparency is far more useful than vague phrases such as “maximum strength”.
From Traditional Mushroom Knowledge to Modern Biotechnology
There is something unusual about the Hifas da Terra story.
It begins with a family surrounded by fungi in Galicia, moves through university biology and mycology, and ultimately develops into clinical research, biotechnology and international scientific collaboration.
Dr Catalina Fernández de Ana Portela has described the company’s role as creating a bridge between the traditional use of mushrooms and modern scientific investigation.
That is probably one of the most useful ways to understand Hifas da Terra.
It does not mean that centuries of traditional mushroom use automatically prove modern health claims.
Nor does it mean that every Hifas da Terra formulation has already been clinically proven.
Instead, it means the company is attempting to answer a much more serious question:
What happens when traditional knowledge about fungi is examined using modern biotechnology, analytical chemistry and clinical research?
Why Does This Matter When Choosing a Mushroom Supplement?
The mushroom supplement market can be confusing.
Two products can both say “Cordyceps” or “Lion’s Mane” on the front of the label while being very different products in terms of raw material, extraction, concentration and analytical testing.
When choosing a mushroom supplement, we believe customers should be able to ask:
- Which mushroom species and strain is being used?
- Is it a powder or an extract?
- How is the extract produced?
- Are bioactive compounds measured?
- Are beta-glucans clearly declared?
- Has the finished product been analysed?
- Is there traceability?
- Is the company involved in genuine scientific research?
- Are its claims supported by evidence?
These questions are far more meaningful than simply choosing the product with the most attractive packaging or the biggest number on the front of the bottle.
So Why Do We Choose Hifas da Terra?
For us at Daily Health Market, the answer is not that Hifas da Terra promises miracles.
In fact, we believe the opposite is more important.
We choose to work with Hifas da Terra because behind its products we can identify factors that can actually be investigated and verified:
- More than 25 years of specialist experience
- A founder trained in biology and mycology
- Doctoral research connected with integrative oncology
- A PhD-led research and innovation team
- 62% of profits reported as reinvested into R&D
- More than 25 active R&D projects
- More than 15 active clinical studies
- Collaboration with more than 200 multidisciplinary experts
- Human clinical research
- Peer-reviewed published scientific work
- Measurable bioactive compounds
- Analytical product testing
- 360° traceability
That does not turn a food supplement into a medicine.
But it does give customers considerably more information with which to judge what they are buying.
And in a supplement market where two products can carry exactly the same mushroom name while being completely different in quality, concentration and scientific background, that transparency matters.
Science Without Miracle Claims
We believe medicinal and functional mushrooms are one of the most interesting areas of natural-product research today.
We also believe they should be discussed responsibly.
Research involving cancer, immunity, microbiota or other medical conditions does not mean that a Hifas da Terra supplement prevents, treats or cures those conditions.
What it does show is that this is a company willing to invest significant resources into discovering what mushrooms can – and cannot – do using modern scientific methods.
For us, that is a far more convincing reason to trust a brand than any miracle claim could ever be.
Important Information
Hifas da Terra products sold by Daily Health Market are food supplements and are not intended to diagnose, prevent, treat or cure any disease.
Food supplements should not replace prescribed medication, professional medical care or a varied and balanced diet.
Anyone receiving cancer treatment, immunosuppressive therapy, anticoagulant medication or other medical treatment should discuss the use of supplements with their doctor or specialist healthcare team before use.
References & Further Reading
-
Hifas da Terra – Research and Innovation.
Official Hifas da Terra information on its research programme, including the company’s reported 62% reinvestment of profits into R&D, multidisciplinary collaborations, clinical research and biotechnology projects. -
Hifas da Terra – 25 Years at the Forefront of Mushroom Research to Improve Health.
Official company history describing the origins of Hifas da Terra, its development from Dr Catalina Fernández de Ana Portela’s university project and its long-term focus on mushroom biotechnology and research. -
Hifas da Terra – About Hifas.
Official company information on founders Dr Catalina Fernández de Ana Portela and Dr Esteban Sinde Stompel, the scientific team and Hifas da Terra’s multidisciplinary research collaborations. -
Forbes España – Catalina Fernández, CEO of Hifas da Terra: “Investing more than 60% of profits in R&D is not a strategy, it is a responsibility.”
Interview published in 2026 discussing the origins of Hifas da Terra, Catalina Fernández de Ana Portela’s scientific background and the company’s approach to research and clinical validation. -
Fernández de Ana Portela, C. – Doctoral Thesis, University of Santiago de Compostela, 2022.
Mycotherapy applied in integrative oncology: the application of medicinal mushroom extracts in colorectal cancer to improve quality of life and patient prognosis.
Doctoral Programme in Clinical Research in Medicine. Listed in the Dialnet academic database. -
Regueiro C, Codesido L, García-Nimo L, et al. (2022).
Effect of the Nutraceutical Micodigest 2.0 on the Complication Rate of Colorectal Cancer Surgery With Curative Intent: Protocol for a Placebo-Controlled Double-blind Randomized Clinical Trial.
JMIR Research Protocols. 2022;11(5):e34292.
DOI: 10.2196/34292
PMID: 35576566 -
Regueiro C, Diez Martín A, Pérez S, et al. (2025).
The Effect of Fungal Nutraceutical Supplementation on Postoperative Complications, Inflammatory Factors and Fecal Microbiota in Patients Undergoing Colorectal Cancer Surgery with Curative Intent: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind Clinical Trial.
Biomedicines. 2025;13(5):1185.
This peer-reviewed study reported no statistically significant overall reduction in postoperative complications, while significant changes were observed in selected immune-related measurements and gut microbiota composition. The authors also reported that the trial did not reach its originally calculated sample size.
PMID: 40427011 -
ClinicalTrials.gov – NCT04821258.
Clinical trial registration for the randomised, placebo-controlled study evaluating Mico-Digest 2.0 in patients undergoing colorectal cancer surgery with curative intent. -
Hifas da Terra – Research and Innovation: Microimmunomama Project.
Official research information describing a breast cancer clinical research programme involving more than 100 patients and collaboration with the Álvaro Cunqueiro Hospital / Galicia Sur research network. -
Hifas da Terra – Microimmunomama Clinical Trial Information.
Official company publication describing the randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled research programme investigating Mico-Mama 2.0 in women with breast cancer, including microbiota, immune and quality-of-life parameters.
References were reviewed for accuracy at the time this article was prepared. Scientific research is continually developing, and the inclusion of a study or clinical trial does not mean that a Hifas da Terra food supplement has been proven to prevent, treat or cure disease.