Metsä Group has straightforward processes for managing and supervising its network of entrepreneurs, and the company is committed to continuously developing its cooperation with contractors. When negotiating contracts, Metsä Group checks the background of each entrepreneur and ensures that they meet the company’s corporate responsibility requirements. All contractors must also undertake to comply with Metsä Group’s Supplier Code of Conduct. There are no differences in the level of compensation paid by Metsä Group or the quality of work between Finnish and non-Finnish workers. Metsä Group’s forest management contract partners may hire a contract entrepreneur to do the agreed work, but the selected contract entrepreneur must first be approved by Metsä Group. Metsä Group’s terms and conditions prohibit the chaining of work further down the subcontracting chain.
In recent years, Metsä Group has increased the number of both its own inspections and regular supply chain audits carried out by third parties. In 2024 and 2025, Tapio has audited all Metsä Group's forest management contractors that use foreign workers. Overall, comprehensive audits indicate that forestry contractors’ operations and awareness of their responsibilities have improved. For example, the awareness of foreign workers living in Finland about the rules of working life has improved, and all inspected employees had the right to work in Finland.
The areas of development pinpointed in the audit were primarily related to contract entrepreneurs’ administrative responsibilities such as missing documentation. Metsä Group supports the development of contract entrepreneurs’ business operations and corporate responsibility practices to make it easier to document the contracting partner’s operations and employer practices. In addition to external audits, Metsä Group annually monitors each forest management entrepreneur and maintains an active dialogue about potential areas of development concerning cooperation. Moreover, Metsä Group regularly trains both its own and its contract entrepreneurs’ personnel in safety and environmental matters.
“Our contractor networks do very important work that benefits the growth and biodiversity of our owner members’ and other customers’ forests in Finland. In addition to Finns, we need workers from other countries for forest management work both now and in the future. Comprehensive audits carried out by Tapio in 2024 and 2025 among Metsä Group's contractors show that we are on the right track, but there is still room for improvement. The results of the external audits help us develop our operations and correct any individual shortcomings in our supply chain. We intend to continue to systematically develop our supply chain, our own supervision and external audits also in the future,” says Ilkka Köntti, SVP, Production, Metsä Group Wood Supply and Forest Services.