Finnish organic research will be exceptionally broadly and diversely represented at the international organic research conference “Organics as a Response to the Urgent Need for Resilient Food Systems”, held in Uppsala on 15–17 June 2026.
Finland has a strong presence in this year’s programme. The conference programme includes 15 oral presentations by Finnish researchers, seven of them from Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) and eight from the University of Helsinki. In addition, Finnish research will be presented in six poster sessions. The research topics cover a wide range of themes, from animal welfare, nutrient cycling and biodiversity to resilience, consumer perspectives and environmental impacts.
“High-quality, internationally leading research is being carried out in Finland today, examining the food system as a whole, from producers to consumers. Organic research can help address many of the difficult sustainability challenges facing food production,” says Sari Iivonen, Director of the Finnish Organic Research Institute (FORI).
Finnish research will also be represented in the conference opening programme. Professor Johan Ekroos from the University of Helsinki will deliver one of the conference’s three keynote lectures, entitled “Multifunctional Organic Farming Systems that Enhance Biodiversity at Field and Landscape Levels”. In addition, Professor Rogier Schulte from Wageningen University, a visiting researcher at the University of Helsinki, will speak on “The Design of Resilient, Sustainable and Equitable Farms Ready for Tomorrow’s Challenges”.
The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) is the main organiser of the conference. The Finnish Organic Research Institute is part of the conference organising committee. The Institute’s mission is to promote the internationalisation of Finnish organic research and to support the societal impact of research.
Presentations by researchers
Researchers from Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
- Katriina Heinola: The Role of Knowledge in Evaluating Animal Welfare Practices
- Minna Väre: Farmer Attributes Enhancing Resilience and Animal Welfare on Organic Farms
- Jarkko Niemi: Identifying Business and Policy Options to Promote Organic Pig and Poultry Production
- Ansa Palojärvi: Arable Soil Microbial Communities Are Affected by Plant Community and Agricultural Management
- Timo Lötjönen: How to Optimize Tillage to Control Creeping Perennial Weeds?
- Anna-Elina Karimaa: Organic Crop Production Can Reduce Nitrogen Leaching and Its Eutrophication Impact in the Baltic Sea
- Marjo Keskitalo: Mass Selection Is a Potential Tool for Farmers to Improve Specialty Crops that Are Important for Local Food Production
Researchers from the University of Helsinki
- Jukka Kivelä: Chicken Manure and Other By-products from Egg and Broiler Production as Fertilizers
- Mari Unnbom: Recycled Fertilizers and Soil Amendments in Sustainable Cropping Systems – Effects on Soil Carbon and Microbial Communities
- Kari Koppelmäki: Does Increasing the Land Area under Organic Farming Improve Sustainability and Resilience?
- Heli Lehtinen: Organic Farmers’ Interpretations and Perceptions of Regenerative Farming Practices
- Jana Firse: From Rural Peripheries to Food System Hubs: A Foodscape Approach to Investigate the Potential of a Bio-district in Eastern Finland
- Iryna Herzon: Biodiversity Benefits of Grazing Are Highest at Extensive Levels, Also under Organic Management
- Hanna Susi: Impacts of Carbon Farming Practices on Biodiversity at the Farm Scale: Abundance as an Early, Context-dependent Indicator in Boreal Finland
Poster presentations
- Juho Hautsalo, Luke: Resilient Cultivars for Finnish Organic Production
- Terhi Suojala-Ahlfors, Luke: Readiness of Finnish Organic and Conventional Vegetable Farmers to Use Actions Supporting Biodiversity
- Jesse Jorna, Luke: Soil Microbiome Structure in Response to Short-term Crop Type Changes and Long-term Sustainable Farming Practices
- Hanna Muttilainen, Luke: Enhancing Forest Resilience through Organic Non-timber Forest Products
Nordic-Baltic scientific conference 15-17th June 2026, Uppsala, Sweden