The Team Finland Network is organizing a business delegation visit to the State of Minnesota on 1-3 June 2022 led by Ambassador, Consul General Mr. Mika Koskinen, Consulate General of Finland in New York.
The Team Finland delegation will visit Minnesota's capital St. Paul and the connecting city of Minneapolis, as well as the surrounding areas. This mission builds on a partnership Finland and Minnesota started in 2021, with a special focus on (1) clean energy and sustainability technologies, (2) digital technologies (Internet of Things) in different industry verticals, as well as (3) food and agriculture. The delegation will meet with Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz and other state leadership, representatives of Fortune 500 companies and top university researchers.
Background
Finland and Minnesota signed a Letter of Understanding in October 2021 concerning cooperation in sustainable technologies during a visit of Minister for Development Cooperation and International Trade Ville Skinnari to Minnesota. In November 2021 Governor Walz visited Finland with a large business delegation on his first foreign visit since the pandemic. This visit will build on the progress and connections made by the earlier delegations. Through this partnership Finland and Minnesota work together to accelerate the green transition and leverage each others' strengths in the digital revolution.
The delegation plans to visit some of Minnesota's leading companies such as 3M, Best Buy and General Mills, as well as world-class research institutions like the University of Minnesota. On the sectors of clean energy and digital technologies the program is set to include meetings with leading Minnesotan energy companies such as Xcel Energy, industry groups and research institutions leading on the green transition and IOT applications. In the food and agriculture sector the delegates will get the opportunity to visit many of Minnesota's new food companies and research facilities, with a special focus on the trending segment of plant-based protein innovations and R&D cooperation, including University of Minnesota's Plant Protein Innovation Center.
The visit will be an excellent opportunity for Finnish innovators, small and big businesses to meet with 3M, who operate on almost all industry segments from consumer products to energy and health care. In fact, the State of Minnesota is a leader on innovation; it holds the highest number of patents in the world. When it comes to Internet of Things technology and applications the state houses vibrant analytics clusters and a growing IOT community.
Many big and small Finnish companies already call Minnesota their homebase in the US market, attracted by the friendly business community, strong existing ties with Finland and the Nordic region and the state's central location.
Finland and Minnesota are building an even stronger long-term partnership in strategic growing economic sectors and participants in the delegation will benefit from the expertise and commitment of Team Finland and Minnesota state officials working on boosting ties between our regions. The aim of the partnership is to encourage innovation and industrial collaboration in the outlined sectors.
Who should attend?
This visit is targeted at Finnish companies and research organizations whose focus is on clean energy, food and agriculture, digital technologies and Internet of Things.
We welcome Finnish companies traveling from Finland to the US that are pursuing business opportunities in the US. Finnish companies' local representatives in the U.S. are also welcome to join the delegation.
Practicalities
We are closely monitoring the current geopolitical situation and aim to organize visits while taking into account the situation and security. In addition, we are closely following the Covid-19 travel restrictions and any possible changes related to them. The United States is open to fully vaccinated visitors, and they are exempt from quarantine, however, a negative Covid-19 test taken 1 day before the departure from first embarkation point is required from all passengers.
To cover the expenses of arranging the visit, Business Finland will charge a participation fee. The cost estimate is based on 10 companies participating in the visit.
- Micro Businesses and SMEs: 1700 EUR + 24% VAT per person
- Major Companies: 2000 EUR + 24% VAT per person
Business Finland will invoice the participation fee after the visit based on the actual costs. The invoiced fee will not exceed the amounts mentioned above. Kindly note that the participation fee does not include flights or accommodation of the participant nor meals outside the business delegation program
Team Finland visit to Michigan, May 17-19 2022
If you are interested in further opportunities in bioeconomy, smart forestry, marine & ports technologies, mobility in the United States, take a look at this visit to Michigan in May 2022 below.
