The south savo food cluster
The South Savo Food Cluster covers the entire food chain, from primary production to retail and food services. Its members represent a broad range of the region’s food sector, including primary production, food manufacturing, tourism, catering and retail, as well as research and development.
The South Savo Food Cluster was established in 2022. It builds on more than 20 years of cooperation between food-sector development and education organisations within Ekoneum ry, the South Savo association for food-sector development. The establishment of the cluster placed regional businesses at the heart of development efforts and brought the stakeholders together in a close-knit collaborative network. The cluster’s members include 29 businesses and nine other organisations, mainly representing research and development.
The South Savo Food Cluster operates as a coordinated network. The organisations committed to maintaining it are
A significant regional role
South Savo’s smart specialisation strategy provides a strong foundation for the food cluster. Food is one of the region’s strategic strengths, and the development objectives for the food sector include clean, safe and responsible food production, low-carbon solutions, the commercialisation of high-quality food products and services, and internationalisation. The cross-cutting themes — digitalisation, the green transition, skills, entrepreneurship, ecosystems and clusters — align directly with the food cluster’s role.
Strategic objective for 2032 (vision)
The South Savo food cluster is an attractive collaborative network that delivers value to its members and promotes the visibility and sustainable growth of South Savo’s food sector.
WE DEVELOP, CONNECT AND ADVOCATE FOR SOUTH SAVO’S RESPONSIBLE FOOD SECTOR
- FOOD IDENTITY AND VISIBILITY
- SKILLS, RENEWAL AND GROWTH
- NEW OPPORTUNITIES THROUGH INTERNATIONALISATION
- Sustainability and responsibility are cross-cutting themes across all three priorities.
The South Savo Food Cluster offers its members and regional stakeholders:
- up-to-date information and insights into trends
- development pathways, networks and partnerships
- connections to research, development and innovation (RDI) and learning environments
- visibility, impact and joint communications
- international networks and opportunities for growth.