Competition 2023

What wood can do

The Uusi puu competition, organized for the fifth time, invited companies to solve global challenges. The winner of the competiton was Application of Biochar in Environmental Construction by GRK Finland and Carbon Balance Finland. In the public vote, a total of 1326 public votes were given.

Evaluation criteria

The entries were evaluated based on the following criteria:

  • Ability to respond to global megatrends
  • Social significance
  • Sustainability
  • Innovative use of wood
  • Global market opportunities

Candidates and winners

1. 3D printing in the manufacture of wood composite products – 3DStep
2. Folded protection for e-commerce – Fold project, VTT and Aalto University
3. Completely plastic-free toy packaging – Paptic and Fischertechnik
4. Fancy and easy to recycle paperboard packaging for chocolates – Metsä Board and Kultasuklaa
5. Application for tracing the origin of wood – SilvaTrace
6. Wooden honeycomb packaging – Korpikuusikon Hunaja
7. Waste-reducing wood-based food packaging – Woodly (2nd in public vote)
8. Saturating kraft paper suitable for lignin-based resin – MM Kotkamills (3rd prize)
9. Extra-durable birch formwork panel – Metsä Wood
10. Application of Biochar in Environmental Construction – GRK Finland and Carbon Balance Finland (1st prize)
11. Wood-based packaging for wood-fibre cutlery – Pyroll Packaging Group and Nature Line Cutlery
12. Fully fibre-based pastry packaging – UPM Specialty Papers and Fazer (2nd prize and 1st in public vote)
13. Wood panel with embedded intelligence – Koskisen (3rd in public vote)

Jury Members

Business and Reserch

Pirjo Kääriäinen, Professor, Aalto University
Ville Leminen, Associate Professor, LUT University
Maarit Lindström, Director, Finnish Forest Industries
Matti Mäkelä, Managing Director, Finnish Forest Foundation
Anne-Christine Ritschkoff, Senior Advisor, VTT

Parliament Members

Sari Essayah, Christian Democratic party
Ari Koponen, Finns Party
Mikko Ollikainen, Swedish People’s Party
Mikko Savola, Centre Party

Rules

  • Wood-based solutions can be existing products, methods or processes. An existing product/method/process may also refer to a solution that is commercially feasible but not necessarily yet on the market.
  • Concrete solutions compete in the competition, not people or companies. One solution can involve several companies, individuals or teams.
  • Five megatrends are in special focus in the competition: resource scarcity, consumer awareness, urbanisation, demographic change and digitalisation. The solution may also respond to one or more megatrends. More detailed descriptions of the megatrends can be found on the Uusi puu website.
  • The solutions may have participated in previous Uusi puu competitions.
  • The competition does not apply to solutions concerning printing or writing paper or bioenergy.

Schedule

  • 26 October 2022: Opening of the competition at the parliament’s New Wood exhibition
  • 26 October 2022 – 15 Janruary 2023: submission of proposals
  • January 2023: Project steering group confirms the competition candidates
  • February 2023: Competition jury evaluates the candidates and interviews the finalists. The competitors and finalists will be presented on February 16th at the New Wood exhibition organized at Finnish Forest Industries’ Winter Seminar.
  • 1-31 March 2023: All competition candidates will be presented on the New Wood social media channels and the public can vote for their favorite on the New Wood website.
  • 20 April 2023: Announcement of the winners of the competition and public vote and the jury panel at the Puunjalostusinsinöörit Spring Seminar at Kalastajatorppa. The top three in the competition will be awarded with videos published on the New Wood website and social media.

Winners of 2023

Application of Biochar in Environmental Construction – GRK Suomi and Carbon Balance Finland
Saturating kraft paper suitable for lignin-based resin – MM Kotkamills
Fully fibre-based pastry packaging – UPM Specialty Papers and Fazer

More information:

Virpi Korhonen
Project Manager
New Wood project
virpi.korhonen (at) uusipuu.fi