Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) is a research organisation that works to advance the bio-circular economy and sustainable use of natural resources. Luke provides new solutions towards sustainable development of society and promotion of new bio-based businesses.
Luke is the second largest research institute in Finland and one of the biggest clusters of bioeconomy expertise in Europe. Luke was launched in 2015 as a merger of the Finnish Forest Research Institute, MTT Agrifood Research Finland, Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute and statistical services of the Information Centre of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
Research, development, and innovation work is conducted in four thematic programmes: Boreal Green Bioeconomy; Innovative Food Chain; Blue Bioeconomy; and Natural Resources Economy in the Society. Key areas of research, development and innovation activity include wood-based materials and value chains, wood-based processes, products and side-streams, their cascading uses and waste management through their life cycles.
Luke laboratories have state-of-the-art equipment for wood mechanical and physical properties (universal testing machine, weather testing chamber), physical properties. as well as chemical analysis and microstructure. Specialist equipment includes pressurized hot water extraction systems at lab and demo scale and instruments for lignocellulosic materials characterisation.