Joe Weber, 29
Co-Founder/President , Four Star Mushrooms , Chicago, IL
June 10, 2025 | 3 min to read
SHORT BIO
Hometown: Hoffman Estates, IL
Hobbies: Running, Swimming, Biking, Fishing, Camping, Cooking, Traveling
Family/Community: Member of the Chicago food ecosystem
Motto in life: All problems have solutions.
Weber has been a trailblazer on a mission to create a profitable model for urban indoor controlled environment agriculture. Concerned about ecosystems, biodiversity loss, soil damage, erosion, climate change and the impact commercial agriculture had on them, he learned that regenerative agriculture was one method to address these concerns. His passion for sustainable agriculture and ecosystem regeneration led to the inception of Four Star Mushrooms in 2019, a year after he graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in integrative biology. Four Star Mushrooms, a controlled environment agriculture company, produces premium specialty mushrooms in the heart of Chicago. Weber and his partner, Sean DiGioia, bootstrapped and hustled over five years to become the premier mushroom producer and distributor in Chicago with over a million dollars in sales in 2024 and even greater growth projected for 2025.
The tenacity to bring this business to life exemplifies his entrepreneurial spirit and resulted in his company becoming a supplier to Chicago’s top restaurants/chefs. Four Star Mushrooms was recognized in StarChefs 2024 Chicago Rising Star Awards, the only food grower to be featured in the Chicago 2024 Stars. Weber was also selected for Newcity’s Big Heat 50 of 2023.
He also partners with and supports local urban farms and community gardens by providing spent mushroom substrate free to fuel their soils. Four Star Mushrooms most recently partnered with Christy Webber Landscapes to provide spent mushroom substrate at scale for new tree plantings all around Chicagoland.
Q: How did you begin working in the produce industry and why?
I began working in the produce industry in 2019 when I started Four Star Mushrooms. I was primarily focused on producing fresh, premium-quality specialty mushrooms for Chicago chefs. At the time, most chefs I encountered were buying mushrooms from other states or countries, the quality was poor, and the variety was minimal. I began producing and bringing multiple varieties into the Chicago market that were previously not available or of low quality. I found tremendous fulfillment in helping chefs create unique and memorable dining experiences.
Q: What is the one thing in your business that you are most passionate about?
We are most passionate about our mission: to accelerate the transition to a regenerative food system. We believe that improving our food system will benefit human health, ecological health, and our resilience to a changing climate.
Q: How has the industry changed during your tenure?
A year after I started Four Star Mushrooms, COVID shut down the world. I think this had a profound effect on the restaurant and retail industry and the following five years have not been easy. I think the survivors of the past five years have proven that they are resilient and innovative.
Q: What challenges and opportunities do you see for the future of the industry?
The U.S. produce industry is threatened by imports and a changing climate. We need to create a more resilient food system that doesn’t just produce more, but produces food with greater nutrient density. The local producers will be the ones who change our food system. Chefs and consumers will adopt these producers and allow the local food movement to scale.
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