Cross-Border Cooperation Creates New Opportunities for Birch Sap Business

Extending the Shelf Life of Birch Sap – A New Opportunity for Rural Bio-Business

As part of the eRural Resilience project, cross-border cooperation has helped Danish entrepreneur Per Kaasgaard Pedersen, founder of Kaasgaards in Denmark, explore new opportunities to develop his birch sap and birch syrup business. With support from the eRural resilience project partner Tønder Business Council in Denmark, a connection was established with other project partner Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences (SEAMK) in Finland, to investigate ways to extend the shelf life of birch sap. The collaboration has delivered promising results, opening up new possibilities for reaching a wider range of consumers.

Per Kaasgaard Pedersen shares his experience:

“A big thank you to everyone who contributed to this collaboration! With the support of the Tønder Business Council, we connected with SEAMK in Seinäjoki. Through online meetings and email communication, we arranged to send 20 litres of birch sap to SEAMK for testing to see whether its shelf life could be extended.

The results were very encouraging: the shelf life of birch sap can indeed be extended by up to three months. This opens up new opportunities for my business, allowing me to reach more consumers, including fitness centres, athletes and people with an active lifestyle.

I am also very grateful for the opportunity to present our birch sap and birch syrup at Food Days 2026 in Seinäjoki .”

— Per Kaasgaard Pedersen, founder of Kaasgaards in Denmark

The eRural Resilience project promotes resilient rural communities in the Baltic Sea Region by helping business support organisations and rural entrepreneurs make better use of digital and bioeconomy opportunities. This example illustrates how cross-border partnerships can translate knowledge and expertise into practical benefits for rural businesses.

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