In an interview published on Sunday by Aamulehti and other Alma Media outlets, the premier urged forest owners not to wait for a possible rise in the price of raw timber.
Vanhanen also warned industry that if it now cuts back on capacity due to a perceived lack of raw material, it will not be easy to restore it later. He added that he believes Finland can be self-sufficient in all types of wood besides birch.
The government has warned of a possible loss of 16,000 jobs in the wood processing industry if Russia goes ahead with plans to sharply raise tariffs on timber exports next year.
The forest industry was the mainstay of the Finnish economy until the emergence of the high-tech sector in the 1990s.
YLE