2005

STATE STOCK COMPANY ”LATVIJAS VALSTS MEŽI” (LATVIA’S STATE FORESTS) RECEIVES RECOGNITION FOR INNOVATIVE ENTREPRENEURSHIP

SSC „”Latvijas valsts meži” (LVM) has received an award of distinction from the Employers’ Confederation of Latvia (ECL) for innovative entrepreneurship, finishing among the top three finalists for the ECL 2005 prize „”For innovation in entrepreneurship” competition. This appreciation has been received for the introduction and development of modern technologies in production of forest plants.

The deputy director of „”LVM Sēklas un stādi”, a structural unit of SSC „”Latvijas valsts meži”, Laima Zvejniece said that LVM since 2000 is gradually introducing new technologies of forest plant production that has allowed it to achieve a rapid increase in production and sales volumes. During the last two years, by investing in research, plant selection and mineral nourishment has been improved providing better growth and faster growing in the forest. “It is a great satisfaction that alongside a pharmacy company, operating in the traditional high technology and innovation field, there are two forest industry enterprises in the top three. It proves that Latvian forest and woodworking industries are able to develop as a modern, effective and technologically highly developed field,” Laima Zvejniece acknowledges.

 

SSC „”Latvijas valsts meži” is the only company that offers to the local market coniferous containerized seedlings and bare root seedlings with an advanced root system. Compared to regular plants, planting such selected seedlings in clearings and for land reforestation allow the land owner to increase the value of forest and the profit from its management by up to 20%. After introduction of the new production technologies and rapid increase of production and sales volumes from 2000 to 2003, this year the proportion of new products in sales has reached 45%. LVM has invested in research in 2004 and 2005 to improve the quality of innovative production. It has been achieved by carrying out plant mineral nourishment optimization in cooperation with the Biology Institute of the University of Latvia, and ensuring sufficient plant mycorrhization (infection with fungi that improve seedling mineral nourishment in a forest environment) and selection research in cooperation with LVMI „”Silava”.