November has begun with mild and rainy weather, and the final tasks of the season \u2013 wrapping up and clearing out \u2013 are now underway. What a long buying season it turned out to be this year!
The last purchasing day at many of our buying stations was Sunday, October 12, 2025. It was a good moment to close the season \u2013 everyone was feeling the weariness by then: staff, owners, and pickers alike.<\/p>\n
After three difficult seasons, we can finally say that this year we were once again able to experience a proper, abundant harvest and product collection. What a relief for us as a company \u2013 and what joy for the pickers!
The best kind of seasons are those filled with energy, abundance, and that familiar rush of activity \u2013 they remind us why we do this work. When nature and the forests offer their best, it\u2019s easier to keep our own motivation and energy alive.<\/p>\n
Each year, it is a huge effort to set up our entire purchasing organisation again for the season\u2019s challenges \u2013 never knowing exactly what to expect. But the 2025 season brought us many things to be happy about!<\/p>\n
A Look Back at the Season<\/strong><\/p>\n Let\u2019s take a moment to reflect on the past season \u2013 the joys, successes, and challenges alike. However, we managed to maintain high quality and strong sales, which fortunately balanced some of the costs of organising northern purchases. Still, better cloudberry goals will have to wait for future seasons. One of the clear highlights of the 2025 season was the bilberry. There were abundant berries in the forests, of excellent quality, and they lasted well into autumn. Dalla Valle Oy reached record levels in bilberry collection this year. The lingonberry prices were also record-high, although the total crop in Eastern Finland was smaller than usual. Lingonberries ripened slowly and remained small in size, and finding good picking areas required some searching. We also managed to purchase a good quantity of cranberries this year. Currants have now clearly established themselves as part of our purchasing operations, and their volumes are growing \u2013 the berries were exceptionally large this season.<\/p>\n Porcini \u2013 Our Main Product<\/strong><\/p>\n Our main product, the porcini mushroom, brought us many reasons to smile this year. Good quality makes everything easier: picking, purchasing, handling, and of course, selling. One of the main risks with porcini is always its variable quality, which can shift even within the same flush. Also, the porcini situation elsewhere in Europe happened to be favourable for us for once. We were also happy for the pickers \u2013 it\u2019s such a joy to finally collect porcini again, and of good quality too! Unfortunately, we completely missed the beautiful pine porcini from Rokua in Vaala this year, as we couldn\u2019t open purchasing there. In Satakunta we tried, but porcini simply didn\u2019t rise.<\/p>\n Other Mushrooms<\/strong><\/p>\n For other mushroom species, the collected quantities remained clearly below normal. Chanterelles were abundant in Southern Finland but sparse in the East. They appeared late in our region and in modest quantities. In Summary<\/strong><\/p>\n From the 2025 season, we will especially remember the return of normal porcini quantities and their exceptional quality; the abundance of bilberries; and the record-high picking prices for bilberries and lingonberries.<\/p>\n We\u2019re also deeply grateful for the positive energy within our staff \u2013 their endurance and commitment throughout the season were admirable. Many of our long-term partners made cooperation smooth and efficient, thanks to shared experience and understanding of the products and the unique challenges of the season.
Overall, many wild products were later than usual this year. Cloudberry purchasing in the North started exceptionally late, not until the end of July. After several strong years, the cloudberry crop was very small this time.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s worth noting that the purchase price for cloudberries was exceptionally high this year.<\/p>\n
The picker price for bilberries kept rising throughout the season, and it was a pleasure to be able to offer good earnings to pickers. Many berry pickers made excellent daily incomes through their hard work.<\/p>\n
Still, the higher prices clearly encouraged more pickers to head out \u2013 many continued collecting well into the season.<\/p>\n
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The biggest relief was that porcini rose well in our main purchasing area \u2013 North Karelia.
What made this season so special was the outstanding quality of the porcini. Such top quality is rare.<\/p>\n
This year, however, the conditions were just right \u2013 the quality was exceptionally good.<\/p>\n
Even though the overall volume didn\u2019t reach record levels, we achieved normal quantities, and after several weak seasons, that already felt like a victory.<\/p>\n
Even we found a moment to visit the forests and inspire the next generation of pickers.<\/p>\n
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Russulas were very scarce, even though demand was strong. Unfortunately, rains did not coincide with the ideal conditions for russula growth.
Craterellus (trumpet chanterelles) appeared later than usual; even though our buying season extended into October, their growth had only just begun.<\/p>\n
We also collected very little cauliflower fungus (typ\u00e4sk\u00e4\u00e4p\u00e4<\/em>), although sheep polypore (lampaank\u00e4\u00e4p\u00e4<\/em>) was plentiful in the forests. We\u2019ll keep searching for customers for these mushrooms in future years.<\/p>\n
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Encounters with pickers are always among the most memorable parts of each season, and this year was no exception.<\/p>\n
We also found new partners this year, with whom we look forward to future collaborations.<\/p>\n
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