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HKScan Oyj () is a
Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...
manufacturer of meat foods and products, but nowadays its product range also includes
ready meal A frozen meal (also called TV dinner (Canada and US), prepackaged meal, ready-made meal, ready meal (UK), frozen dinner, and microwave meal) is a packaged frozen meal that comes portioned for an individual. A frozen meal in the United States an ...
s and pet foods. It is based in
Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...
. In the 1990s and 2000s the company – by then known as HK Ruokatalo Oy – targeted the international market, acquiring meat production companies around the
Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...
: In
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
,
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, an ...
,
Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
and
Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
– including the Swedish Scan AB in 2007, resulting in the modern-day name of the company. HK is originally an
initialism An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...
of Helsingin Kauppiaat ("Helsinki Merchants"), a company that was acquired by LSO in 1991. HK is the best known brand of the company in its native Finland. Its Finnish subsidiary is still known as HK Ruokatalo Oy ("HK Food House Inc."). HKScan Oyj is the fifth largest food manufacturer in Europe and a company listed in the
Helsinki Stock Exchange The Nasdaq Helsinki, formerly known as the Helsinki Stock Exchange ( fi, Helsingin Pörssi, sv, Helsingforsbörsen), is a stock exchange located in Helsinki, Finland. Since 3 September 2003, it has been part of Nasdaq Nordic (previously called ...
.


History

:''Text in this section is largely based on a translation of the company'
history page
' The history of the company in its current form traces back to the year 1913, when a number of farmers founded the
co-operative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...
slaughterhouse A slaughterhouse, also called abattoir (), is a facility where animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a packaging facility. Slaughterhouses that produce meat that is no ...
of South-Western Finland (LSO – Lounais-Suomen Osuusteurastamo, or nowadays LSO-Osuuskunta Oy, a subsidiary of HK Ruokatalo Oy responsible for attaining the livestock in Finland). The company was successful in domestic meat wholesales. More local co-operative meat producers joined LSO during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. A big reorganization took place in the Finnish meat products market in 1981 and 1985 when SOK and OTK – both large retailing co-operatives – gave up their own meat industries. This naturally led to major increase in LSO's market share. During the early 1990s LSO acquired other domestic food manufacturers: Helsingin Kauppiaat Oy in 1991 and Kariniemi Oy in 1993. Helsingin Kauppiaat was a meat producer with a factory located in
Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
's suburb
Sörnäinen Sörnäinen ( sv, Sörnäs; ''Sörkkä'' or ''Sörkka'' in Helsinki slang) is a neighbourhood in the city of Helsinki, Finland. Sörnäinen is located a little more than one kilometre north from the coastal centre of Helsinki, near the district ...
at the time. Its products included the well-recognized ''Sininen Lenkki'' sausage. Kariniemi was a producer of chicken meat. Sörnäinen area is still active (as of 2010) in meat production and wholesale business, spotting Helsingin Tukku wholesaler and Chef Wotkin's meathouse, but all the functions of the original HK factory, including the production of ''Sininen Lenkki'', have moved to a new factory in
Pakkala Pakkala ( sv, Backas) is a city district in Vantaa, Finland. It is the most populated district in the Aviapolis major region, and is named after the Backas estate situated there. Pakkala is notable for the suburb of Kartanonkoski and the busines ...
,
Vantaa Vantaa (; sv, Vanda, ) is a city and Municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. It is part of the inner core of the Greater Helsinki, Finnish Capital Region along with Helsinki, Espoo, and Kauniainen. With a population of (), Vantaa i ...
. The company started foreign expansion in 1998, when it bought the majority of shares in the Estonian
Rakvere Lihakombinaat Rakvere Lihakombinaat (Rakvere Meat Processing Plant) is an Estonian meat products manufacturer, based in Rakvere. It's the biggest meat processor in the Baltic states. History The history of Rakvere Meat Processing Plant dates back to the y ...
, a previously state-owned but later privatized food producer. More companies were acquired in the following years: Sokołów in Poland, Tallegg in Estonia and Rigas Miesnieks in Latvia. Rigas Miesnieks has operations in Lithuania as well, where the company offers Klaipedos Maistas brand products in addition to its own Latvian brands. In 2006 and 2007 the heavily expanded company, that by this time was known as HK Ruokatalo Group, acquired Scan AB, the largest meat producer in
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...
. Consequently, the company renamed to ''HKScan Oyj''. In September 2010 HKScan announced that it would acquire the biggest poultry products manufacturer in
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...
,
Rose Poultry A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
. The company has optimized its production chain heavily during the 1990s and 2000s, leading to many mass layoffs and closures. Production facilities in
Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...
were closed in October 2007, and in
Tampere Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...
in March 2008.


Brands

In Finland, HKScan offers several brands including: * ''HK'': all beef and pork meat and products, ready meals and salads. The most-recognized product is probably ''Sininen Lenkki'' – an inexpensive mixed-meat sausage. * ''Kariniemen'': Chicken products. * ''Popsi'':
Knackwurst Knackwurst () (in North America sometimes spelled knockwurst () refers to a type of sausage of northern German origin from the mid-16th century. The many available varieties depend on the geographical region of their production. Etymology and ...
s, some sausages. * ''Via'': The latest addition,
gourmet Gourmet (, ) is a cultural idea associated with the culinary arts of fine food and drink, or haute cuisine, which is characterized by refined, even elaborate preparations and presentations of aesthetically balanced meals of several contrasting, of ...
products designed by the TV chef Jyrki Sukula, including dressings. * ''Vietävät''


See also


Company website


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hkscan Turku Food and drink companies of Finland Food and drink companies established in 1991 Finnish companies established in 1991 Companies listed on Nasdaq Helsinki