Risto Holappa

Berries and Foraging

I grew up in Arkala, Oulu, surrounded by good berry forests and cloudberry bogs. In season the forests are full of bilberries, lingonberries, cloudberries, and cranberries. My mother's family is from the north, where the foraging tradition passes from one generation to the next. Heading out to pick berries was a natural part of childhood — we often gathered more than our family needed.

Our family also has forests of its own, so everyman's rights are familiar to me in practice — I know exactly what they allow and what they don't.

There is big demand for wild produce in Finland and abroad, but a proper sales channel has been missing. Willit is building it: the picker lists the harvest, the buyer finds it, and the price is fair to both.

I encourage everyone to head into the forest. Thanks to everyman's rights picking is free, and the forest offers its gifts to anyone willing to walk its paths.