HKScan Group, one of Europe’s leading meat companies, will soon begin exporting Finnish pork to China. HKScan Finland’s pork slaughtering facility in Forssa is going to gain export certification from the Chinese food authorities following inspections carried out in August 2014.
The launch of Finnish pork exports to China will be a major milestone in HKScan’s strategy to expand its export footprint, affirms Jukka Nikkinen, head of HKScan’s exports and Away from Home business. Direct exports of Finnish meat to China were not possible prior to certification. In addition to pork, HKScan has long-range plans to begin exporting other meat products suited to local culinary preferences. These include poultry meat, processed meats and convenience meals.
“We devoted much time and effort into preparing this export project together with the authorities. The strong support of the Finnish authorities and close collaboration between our industry, political decision-makers and officials have been crucial to its progress”, adds Nikkinen. “After the forthcoming official export certification, we will continue our efforts to gain similar approvals for Swedish exports.”
HKScan exports pork to a number of EU countries and to long-haul markets including New Zealand and Japan. Russia was formerly another major export destination. The opening of a new export market for Finnish foodstuffs is important in the wake of the import bans imposed by Russia last January.
Pure, safe, nutritious, responsibly produced
Chinese customers and consumers appreciate the pure, chemical-free, safe and responsibly produced reputation of Finnish meat, says Nikkinen. Other assets in favour of Finnish meat exports include a transparent production chain, traceability of raw materials and absence of animal diseases. Unlike many other countries in Europe and worldwide, Finland adheres to a zero-tolerance policy on diseases such as salmonella.
Healthy eating is a rising trend in China, particularly among young urbanites. HKScan caters to this health-conscious trend with products such as its tender and tasty HK Rypsiporsas® rapeseed pork.
HKScan’s Forssa production facility that will gain export certification from China is ISO 9001, 14001 and 22 000-certified. It has already gained export certifications from the US and Russia. The plant has approximately 500 employees.
Roughly 60% of the pork exported from Finland comes from HKScan’s Forssa facility. HKScan currently exports meat to close to 50 countries.
For further information:
Hannu Kottonen, CEO, HKScan Group
Kindly submit a callback request to Marja-Leena Dahlskog, SVP Communications, tel. +358 (0)10 570 2142