Industry association Plant Based Foods Finland (Pro Vege in Finnish) has appointed its first executive director, Jukka Kajan.
Previously, Kajan has worked as a food industry consultant and Public Affairs Manager at Raisio Group. Niklas Kaskeala, Chairman of the Board at Plant Based Foods Finland, says Kajan’s leadership will help to strengthen the association’s advocacy efforts.
“We look forward to Nordic and European cooperation led by Jukka, who brings extensive knowledge of plant-based food value chains and is a well-connected and active advocate for food system transformation,” he says.
In its first year, Plant Based Foods Finland has amassed 27 members, including all major retail chains in the country and participants from the restaurant sector, research institutions, and cellular agriculture. Kajan describes the number of members as “exceptional”, noting that plant-based foods are clearly seen as important in a significant portion of the Finnish food sector.
“Wonderful opportunity”
Plant Based Foods Finland was founded to ensure the plant-based food market grows to its full potential, creating new business and employment opportunities alongside benefits for public health and the environment. The association is involved in policymaking at both domestic and EU levels.
Finland produces key plant-based ingredients such as oats, fava beans, and peas, and Plant Based Foods Finland argues that this — along with the country’s expertise in food technology — makes it well-positioned in the global plant-based market. By educating policymakers about the potential benefits, the association hopes to create equal opportunities for plant-based products, positively influencing the food system.
“One of our main tasks is to ensure Finland benefits from the accelerating global changes in food production and consumption,” says Kajan. “We need to get our policymakers and politicians to realise what a wonderful opportunity this is for our food sector and that Finland can be one of the forerunners in the race between countries. Our goal is to accelerate the normalisation of plant-based eating. In the future, there will be no need to specifically request, explain, or view them as special diets. Vegetarian food will simply be called food.”
