KÄÄPÄ Forest

Wild chaga is getting harder to find in the future and especially harvesting it from accessible locations is becoming more difficult. The accessibility problems impact the price but also hinder the quality management of the harvested chaga conks. If the chaga is harvested from far away locations, it takes a long time for the collected chaga conks to get to the processing facilities and they are in danger of contamination or in risk of otherwise losing their quality.







KÄÄPÄ Biotech has found a solution to this problem. We are utilizing an invention to sustain the chaga supply also in the future. KÄÄPÄ Forest is a subdivision of KÄÄPÄ Biotech, which promotes versatile use of forests and a large scale forest cultivation of chaga. KÄÄPÄ Forest manages the world's largest chaga cultivation network, which is around 200 hectares in size. We only work with forest owners with FSC or PEFC certified forests. 

KÄÄPÄ Biotech can ensure that the harvested chaga is always of premium quality by working with the growing network of FSC or PEFC certified organic forest in Finland. We also work with strict harvesting practises to ensure that the chaga is of premium quality also when it reaches our manufacturing facilities. 

Chaga cultivation is not just a good solution for maintaining chaga supply and producing economical benefits from chaga cultivation for the forest owners, but it is also an ecological and responsible alternative for forest management and clearcutting.

Inoculation

KÄÄPÄ Forest team inoculates chaga in the birch forest to ensure maximum growth ratio. The harvesting is also done by the team for preserving the high quality of the chaga.

KÄÄPÄ Biotech is promoting regenerative forestry practices while growing mushrooms

In KÄÄPÄ Forest’s chaga growing network it is required of the forest owners to keep the wood in the forest. Chaga growing can be seen as a valuable part of this cycle, as chaga is planted in the weakest trees, which will remain in the forest once the chaga has been harvested. The planted chaga will produce more than one harvest but eventually the trees in which chaga was planted will end up in the forest as dead wood to support the forest natural life cycle. 

This can be also viewed from the perspective of the carbon cycle. Chaga is planted in threes that would otherwise be cut from the forest, but now they will remain in the forest for 20 or so years longer. So the carbon sequestration according to these practises is higher compared to traditional forest management practices.