Background and aim
Since the 1980s, Finland has established extensive plantations of curly birch covering more than 7,000 hectares. These plantations are now producing timber that is highly valued for its aesthetic qualities. The availability of curly birch will increase several-fold over the next 3–10 years, making what was previously an expensive material more affordable. In particular, Finland’s wood products industry has an opportunity to use this valuable resource to differentiate itself in global markets and thereby gain a competitive advantage. However, the use of curly birch as a component of products requires high-quality design.
Anticipating this development, the Finnish Curly Birch Society is organising the
Visa Design Challenge 2027 – High-Quality Curly Birch Products for Serial Production competition.
The competition invites designers, interior architects, architects and professionals, companies and students in the wood sector to innovate products suitable for serial production, thereby increasing their value and the use of curly birch. The competition will take place in 2026–2027.
Visa Design Challenge 2027 seeks the best products suitable for serial production that make particular use of brown figured small-diameter curly birch (Betula pendula var. carelica, trunk diameter no more than 15 cm). The aim is to raise awareness of this material as a high-quality, durable and aesthetically valuable material for, for example, interior products, furniture, surfaces and coverings, acoustic and visual elements, lighting, utility objects and jewellery. There is no size restriction on the curly birch material used in the competition, but the use of small-diameter curly birch will be considered an advantage during the evaluation.
The competition is intended for:
- Companies in the wood products sector
- Architects and interior architects
- Designers and product designers
- Other professionals and operators in the wood and woodworking sectors
- Students of wood, design and other related fields
Competition programme and rules
Curly birch information
the Finnish Curly Birch Society will compile an information package on curly birch and its processing by 15 November 2026.
Curly birch supply
To encourage participation in the competition, the Finnish Curly Birch Society has reserved a supply of dried small-dimension brown-figured curly birch material for competitors.
Questions & answers
Competitors have the right to submit questions concerning the competition programme. All questions concerning the competition must be submitted by email to kilpailu (at) visaseura.fi by 8 December 2026. Answers to the questions will be published by 20 December 2026.
