The Finnish Bioeconomy Strategy: Sustainability towards higher value added.

The present document contains Finland's Bioeconomy Strategy for the period 2022-2035, thus updating the previous Bioeconomy Strategy adopted in 2014. The Strategy’s main objective is to increase the value added by the bioeconomy. The aim is to create economic growth and jobs based on sustainable solutions by producing the highest possible value added products and services. At the same time, the Bioeconomy Strategy also aims to: 1. Create competitive and innovative bioeconomy solutions to global problems; 2. Generate businesses that promotes renewal both to the domestic and international markets, which will bring well-being to Finland as a whole; 3. Increase the resource-efficient use and recycling of materials and utilise side streams; 4. Reduce dependence on non-renewable raw materials, especially those that are fossil based; 5. Ensure ecological sustainability, social justice as well as the capacity of renewable natural resources to renew and to broadly strengthen bioeconomy competence; 6. Strengthen and renew technological foundations.
Measures are organized in four different focus areas: 1. Higher value added from the bioeconomy; 2. Strong competence and technology base; 3. Competitive operating environment; 4. Usability and sustainability of bioresources and other ecosystem services; and 5. Increasing value added in different sectors. Some of the measures envisaged across these sectors are: Identifying the means of the bioeconomy to mitigate climate change and promote adaptation to its impacts and halting the loss of biodiversity; Encourage more scientific research related to the bioeconomy, and increasing its impact; Support the creation of new types of networks and partnership models for the development and utilisation of technologies; Promoting an increase in value added for bio-based packaging; Improving the resource efficiency of the wood product industry and wood construction in energy, raw materials, labour, information and capital use; Promote the use of wood and other natural materials in new construction; Developing agriculture and food economy in a consumer-oriented manner with the aim of sustainable and profitable agriculture and food economy; Utilise genetic resources more diversely than before and create opportunities for the improved efficiency of breeding processes; Increasing the efficiency of bioenergy raw materials and production; Securing a high-quality and efficient water supply and utilising the related export and growth potential in cooperation between the public and the private sectors; etc.