A recent Yle article (4 September 2026) on new forest industry products raises an important question. Finland has invested heavily in forest sector research and new product development, so why are we seeing so few breakthroughs in the market?
The problem is not a lack of new products, but the challenge of commercialising them.
Finland has developed wood-based textile fibres, packaging, fuels, composites and many other high-value solutions. Large industrial companies have also been actively pursuing renewal, especially considering the long investment cycles and current market conditions.
However, a new product is not the same as a viable business. Consumers buy toilet paper and the cardboard packaging needed for e-commerce because there is already established demand for them. With a new wood-based material, the market often has to be built almost from scratch. At the same time, Finnish companies are competing with, for example, China's massive development programmes.
Not every promising innovation will succeed – nor should we expect it to. Experimentation and failure are part of building new business.
We should therefore also ask how we can create the first markets for promising new products. Could Finland take a bolder role as an early adopter of new bio-based solutions, providing companies with a springboard to international markets?
In the Joensuu region, the Forest Joensuu network is working together to address this challenge. Alongside major industrial players, we need startups, new technologies and, above all, companies that can grow from small businesses into internationally competitive, medium-sized exporters. This remains a missing link in Finland's forest sector ecosystem.
One concrete step is the new technology centre being established in Joensuu. This joint environment of the University of Eastern Finland, Natural Resources Institute Finland, Karelia University of Applied Sciences and Finnish Environment Institute will bring research, education and businesses under one roof.
We are creating a pilot environment where new technologies can be tested and developed closer to commercial scale. This will help reduce the risks associated with adopting new technologies and shorten the path from research to market. The technology centre is now inviting companies to join us in taking new solutions from research to market.
The future of the forest sector will therefore not be secured simply by inventing more products. We need an environment where companies can grow and new solutions can become profitable businesses. This is the bridge we at Forest Joensuu want to help build.
On behalf of Forest Joensuu:
Lauri Sikanen
Principal Scientist, Natural Resources Institute Finland
Jouni Pykäläinen
Professor of Forest Economics and Policy, University of Eastern Finland
Seppo Tossavainen
Head of Economic and International Affairs, City of Joensuu
Jarno Hämäläinen
Key Account Manager, Business Joensuu
Sari Koivula
Forest and Climate Expert, Regional Council of North Karelia
Sini Rantanen
Head of Education, Karelia University of Applied Sciences
About Forest Joensuu
Forest Joensuu is a network that brings together forest sector companies, research organisations, educational institutions and development organisations in the Joensuu region. Together, we develop solutions in areas including sustainable forest management and wildfire prevention, wood-based products, digital forestry and the circular economy.
The European Forest Capital region is home to more than 600 forest bioeconomy companies and around 6,000 jobs in the sector. Forest Joensuu is part of the Innokaupunki 4 project, co-funded by the European Union and the Regional Council of North Karelia.
Learn more: https://businessjoensuu.fi/forestjoensuu
Caption: Representatives of the Forest Joensuu network gathered together.