Dec 03, 2008. /Lesprom.com/. Juha Hakkarainen, managing director of the Verso pension benefit society for private forestry, has been appointed forest director of the Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners, MTK. The previous forest director, Mr Antti Sahi, was appointed MTK's managing director in October 2008, Nordic Forest Owners’ Associations reported. Mr Hakkarainen says that his most important task will be safeguarding the interests of private forest owners. “It is a great challenge since forests owners’ structure is subject to change. We must determine what is the best policy for safeguarding their interest in the future.” Mr Hakkarainen has a long experience as an employee of MTK. Before taking up his new post he worked for 7,5 years as research manager in MTK's forestry department. “I intend to look into the question how best to enhance MTK's role in safeguarding forest owners' interests. Forest owners constitute one of MTK's three support pillars.” Mr Hakkarainen will take up his job as MTK's forest director in February 2009. His period of notice in his present job is three months. Mr Hakkarainen is 46 years old and his academic degrees are master of forestry and a post graduate degree in forestry science.