January the 11th, 2022 - Move aside Croatian craft beer! The very first Croatian craft tea has come to life through a long family tradition that has been turned into a business. Odores Silentii offers something entirely new to the Croatian market.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marta Duic writes, Odores Silentii is a domestic brand of teas and accessories for serving it, behind which lies a warm family business story. According to Magdalena Sekulic, the first ideas and products were created as hobbies and owing to the personal enjoyment of natural home-made plants and teas back during 2018.

Today, Odores Silentii has gradually developed from a hobby into a family business producing the first Croatian craft tea, and all of their family members are involved in the work. For them, 2021 they say, was a turning point and a year full of development in which they defined clear guidelines for their brand and the way in which they do business. Behind them lies a year of investment, both in terms of material equipment for processing and personalisation, and also when it comes to product development.

Healthy habits...

“Instructed in how to do it all by our grandparents, we collected plants or grew them in our garden, dried them out and enjoyed consuming them. For centuries now, people have collected plants and consumed them through various types of tea drinks, and what grows best in their climate tends to suit them best. The cultivation of medicinal herbs based on the economies of scale and high efficiency has brought tea consumption to an instant level (prepare, consume, move on) and thus dominates the market. Our strategy, however, is different and our products aren't comparable with such a model of tea consumption. We've personally experienced the fact that tea consumption is a healthy habit not only from the aspect of fluid consumption,'' said Magdalena Sekulic, who is behind the Odores Silentii brand making the first Croatian craft tea.

She explained that back at the end of 2020, they teamed up with the family company Bioplanta from Kriz, which grows organic medicinal plants on more than ten hectares of land.

“Odores Silentii deals with hand-picked teas from production in the Bioplant fields. After harvesting and drying out, the teas are hand-picked to separate the ones which are top quality. The amount of manual labour represents the largest share of resources in the entire production chain. This is best illustrated by the example that a kilogram of Odores Silentii tea from lemon balm, chamomile or mint requires two to four hours of manual screening.

All other parts of the production process rely on totally manual work (the processing of sets by grinding and coating), packaging, and at the end - personalisation. From all the above, we believe that Odores Silentii is the first Croatian craft tea offered on the market,'' Sekulic pointed out.

New models

They offer Croatian craft tea packaged in both cans and bags, tea blends with dried organic fruit, personalised gift packages (engraving), wooden chests, gift boxes with teas and accessories and sets for serving, and they're also working on a new collection of special products that combine candles with tea.

"We hope that 2022 will be a new milestone for our business, especially in the development of our sales channels. Our production quantities and the way we personalise our products aren't applicable to traditional retail chains. We have several ideas about alternative ways of accessing the market primarily through social media and creating quality content relying on direct sales and sales models based on so-called ''try and buy'' principles,'' concluded Magdalena Sekulic.

For more, check out Made in Croatia.

January the 11th, 2022 - Croatian festive tourism results are allowing for the thought that this summer season could be the comeback for what we've missed over the last couple of pandemic-dominated tourist seasons, despite how remarkably well summer 2021 turned out. Zagreb, famous for its Advent in Zagreb offer, is still in the lead when it comes to winter tourism.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, although the situation with the coronavirus pandemic in Croatia and the immediate region isn't exactly encouraging at this moment in time, in December and during the winter festive period, the positive trend for Croatian festive tourism results continued, even in Zagreb, which was all but empty and rather sad looking during the last Advent in Zagreb.

As the Croatian Tourist Board (CNTB) reported on Friday, the Christmas and New Year period brought Croatia three times more tourist traffic than it did the year before, although this is a quarter less than before the pandemic. From December the 24th, 2021 to January the 6th, the country welcomed 144,000 arrivals of people who realised an impressive 424,000 overnight stays, which is three times more arrivals with 190 percent more overnight stays than we saw last winter.

Istria, Kvarner and Split

Most overnight stays realised down on the coast took place in Istria, Kvarner and in Split-Dalmatia County, while on the continent most were recorded in the City of Zagreb, which also had best Croatian festive tourism results in terms of traffic. Behind Zagreb are Opatija, Rovinj, Dubrovnik, Split and Zadar.

Most of these overnight stays were realised by domestic guests, followed by Austrians, Slovenes and Germans. In that period alone, Zagreb was visited by about 30,000 tourists who realised 72,500 overnight stays, while back in December, Zagreb recorded a turnover of 74,000 arrivals and 161,000 overnight stays, equal to an encouraging 2.5 times more than one year ago.

It has also since been found out that half of these Croatian festive tourism results (in regard to traffic) were realised in Croatian hotels, with about 92,000 arrivals and 221,000 overnight stays, while there were 104,000 overnight stays in household/private/family facilities.

"These results allow for a dose of optimism and confirm Croatia's market position as a high quality and well-prepared destination. Numerous Croatian cities such as Opatija, Dubrovnik, Split, Osijek and Zagreb prepared interesting content that could be enjoyed in compliance with all of the current epidemiological measures against the spread of coronavirus,'' said the director of the CNTB, Kristjan Stanicic.

Minister of Tourism Nikolina Brnjac also considers this an optimistic beginning of a brand new year, adding that the Croatian festive tourism results will contribute to the overall positive impact of tourism on final revenues.

According to the Zagreb Tourist Board, Zagreb's many hoteliers were sold out for New Year's Eve, and the Snow Queen Trophy took care of bookings for the following days. Private accommodation in Zagreb is also beginning to recover from the damage caused by the pandemic, which is best felt by enterprises who had developed sustainable business practices even before the pandemic struck in early 2020.

An example of that is the company Irundo, which is currently renting out about 15 buildings all over Zagreb, along with apartments in Rovinj and down in Dubrovnik, but is already starting to expand its portfolio, which had been reduced in the public health crisis.

A late start

''The 2021 tourist season started late, but last year was much more successful for us than the previous one was, we had a growth of 100 percent, and we expect the same growth in 2022, with the expansion of the portfolio. Partly due to the return of tourist traffic and demand, but mostly because owners and investors saw that we successfully overcame even the most difficult year, so people who come to Irundo want us to take over their facilities and manage them. We're hiring two more workers who will deal with these acquisitions and we're very optimistic about this year,'' said Igor Kordic, the co-owner of Irundo, which, especially in this crisis, has strengthened the consulting part of their business.

For more, check out our travel section.

January the 11th, 2022 - The new Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus has taken Europe by storm, sweeping through country after country with some richer Northern European nations such as the United Kingdom recording eye-watering infection rates despite having a very high vaccination rate. Croatian epidemiologist Branko Kolaric has spoken out about Omicron, stating that while this variant is the mildest of all so far, he doesn't believe that it will necessarily lead to herd immunity.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, epidemiologist Branko Kolaric of the Croatian Institute of Public Health has stated that he is far from surprised by the large number of newly infected people since Omicron began to spread.

"I can't say I'm surprised by the numbers. Many countries have a similar situation at the moment. We've had bigger and more gatherings over the last two weeks, school starts today. We have an overlap of the fourth and fifth waves. This level of spread can be slowed down, but we need adequate measures in order to ensure that,'' he told HTV.

Is omicron the mildest variant? Our hospitals are still filling up... Is the reason Croatia's poor level of vaccination?

''Yes, that's the most important reason and what causes the greatest level of concern. We have poor vaccination coverage. We also have a lot of people off on sick leave, and there will be infections spreading around in schools. There will be a lot of self-isolation to come. Omicron is the mildest variant, but when you have a lot more infected people, then the number of people in hospitals is higher. Today we have 250 people needing a respirator,'' epidemiologist Branko Kolaric explained.

Rules in schools as the kids return to the classrooms

''I was in favour of extending the school holidays for another week. In addition to the risks posed by being in school, there's also the issue of public transport. In Split there are a large number of people hospitalised, 85 percent of those people are unvaccinated, a large number are elderly… A large number of new patients infected with covid needing medical help are younger people.

The entire population is affected by the virus now. In Britain, for example, the number of hospitalised children was 40, 50, and now with Omicron there are over 100 daily hospitalisations.''

Is Omicron the beginning of the end of the pandemic? Will we reach herd immunity because of it?

''I don't think Omicron will provide herd immunity. Global vaccination is something that would reduce the likelihood of new variants even emerging,'' said epidemiologist Branko Kolaric.

Any new recommendations for this week?

Those who haven't yet been vaccinated, please, go and get vaccinated, wear your masks properly, avoid all unnecessary close contacts, whoever is able to do so, please try to work from home.

About the anti-epidemic measures...

''These are all milder measures, working from home is recommended. We don't have a significant change in the coping strategy with the pandemic on the cards. I expect a large number of infected people to be recorded over the coming days,'' epidemiologist Branko Kolaric said in conversation with HTV.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, make sure to bookmark our dedicated section and select your preferred language if it isn't English.

January the 11th, 2022 - Croatian company teams have impressed some truly global giants in Las Vegas recently. From Amazon to Microsoft and Apple, huge names have shown interest in what these Croatian company teams have to offer.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Lucija Spiljak writes, the winners of Idea Knockout - Sportreact, Codelab, Iron Bull and Orqa - presented their innovationd at the world's largest Consumer Electronics Show (CES), which took place in Las Vegas for the 55th time from January the 5th to the 8th, 2022.

They were joined by the Croatian startup Zuluhood, which was among the ten most promising startups at this year's CES, highlighting a number of innovations for home security.

For the current winner of Idea Knockout, the startup Sportreact, going to Las Vegas was an opportunity to present itsself to international technology journalists, investors and distributors, and among the potential investors was no less than the global giant Amazon.

Croatian company teams presented their innovative products among 800 startups from around the world that exhibited at Eureka Park, for which more than 3,000 new companies applied. In doing so, they attracted the attention of representatives of technology giants such as Apple and Microsoft.

Croatian innovation in Las Vegas

Sportreact is an Internet-of-Things (IoT) device intended for the development of the motor and cognitive abilities of users, intended for both recreational and professional athletes. It is connected by a mobile application (app) that measures and analyses numerous parametres during the individual's physical training.

Codelab introduced the electronic board game Clockwork Briefcase in Vegas, in which the goal is to deactivate a fake explosive hidden in a suitcase.

Iron Bull is an indie-studio for developing highly-realistic robotic tank models with real-tank operational capabilities, including their launch, plastic missile firing capability, and a system for detecting received missiles and any incurred damage. The tank is equipped with a wide-angle camera and is controlled by two players.

The Osijek startup Orqa developed Orqa FPV, which are goggles for the management of drone races and other professional (industrial and civil) drone applications. They also presented a new model of drone goggles while in the USA, a 5G module and a learning controller on a simulator at CES.

The general sponsorship of Idea Knockout, the largest regional competition of technological ideas organised by the Bug magazine, is part of the long-term strategy of Hrvatski Telekom (Croatian Telecom), which is establishing itself as the largest startup accelerator in all of the Republic of Croatia.

In addition to these five startups and Croatian company teams, two more from the PISMO Business Incubator - Grow and Hiroma Design - exhibited their respective products.

Grow unveiled their smart glasses for the deaf that should make life easier for the 72 million people in the world who suffer with various types of hearing problems, while Hiroma Design developed the Moopies educational app in which children connect with characters and become teachers, not just students, while their time spent in front of the screen is controlled by their parents.

For more, check out Made in Croatia.

ZAGREB, 10 Jan 2022 - The works on Pelješac Bridge will wrap up by the end of the month and the access roads are coming along too, so this tourist season it will be possible to drive across the bridge, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said on Monday while visiting the site in southern Croatia.

There is ten more days' work on the bridge and a peak traffic test is planned for the end of the month, to be followed by technical checks, he added.

"As announced, the construction of Pelješac Bridge will be near completion by the end of January 2022."

He said the construction of access roads by Austria's Strabag and Greece's Avax was "coming along" and that they were expected to "be near completion in May and June," while the completion of a road near Ston "should follow in early autumn."

"That's what's good at the moment, but this means that it will be possible to drive across Pelješac Bridge this tourist season, which means without crossing borders and the congestion in Neum," Plenković said, adding that thereby Croatia was becoming "a propulsive auto destination, which is extremely important in 2022."

For more on politics, follow TCN's dedicated page.

ZAGREB, 10 Jan 2022 - The main Zagreb Stock Exchange (ZSE) indices continued to grow on Monday, with the Crobex increasing by 0.08% to 2140.59 points and the Crobex10 rising by 0.34% to 1299.07 points, and regular turnover doubled compared to Friday.

Regular turnover was HRK 8.4 million, twice as much as the HRK 4.2 million generated on Friday.

The highest turnover, of HRK 1.8 million, was generated by the HT telecommunications company. Its price dropped by 0.54% to HRK 184.

The Valamar Riviera stock turned over HRK 1.63 million, closing at HRK 35 per share, up 0.86%.

A total of 40 stocks were traded today, with 17 of them recording price increases, 17 registering price decreases and 6 stagnating in price.

(€1 = HRK 7.515263 )

For more, check out our dedicated business section.

ZAGREB, 10 Jan 2022 - The national COVID-19 crisis management team on Monday published tighter restrictions against COVID-19 on its website, and those tighter rules will be effective as of Tuesday.

The restrictions cap public gatherings at 50 in case of open-air events, and in the event that participants have COVID certificates the maximum number could be 200 if local response teams okay them.

Indoor private social gatherings are capped at 25. There can be a maximum of 50 persons at the site of private gatherings provided that all of them have COVID certificates.

Hospitality establishments can operate without any new restrictions, however, they can expect more frequent inspections and controls of the number of patrons. Checks will be stepped up to monitor compliance with the restriction on the number of guests, as well as with the requirements to maintain a physical distance of 1.5 meters, to use masks when not at the table, and to air and clean the establishment.

A limit on the number of spectators at sports events is imposed, so they will be allowed to fill up a maximum of 20% of an individual grandstand for an indoor event, that is 40% for an outdoor event.

It is mandatory to wear masks at religious and art events, film screenings and exhibitions, as well as sessions of representative bodies.

For all you need to know about coronavirus specific to Croatia, make sure to bookmark our dedicated section and select your preferred language if it isn't English.

ZAGREB, 10 Jan 2022 - The unemployment rate in the European Union (EU), the euro area, and Croatia in November dropped to its lowest level since March 2020 and the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report by Eurostat released on Monday.

The European Union's unemployment rate, measured by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) methodology, in November, fell by 0.2 percentage points compared to the month before, to 6.5%.

In the euro area, it slid by 0.1 percentage point to 7.2%.

In both areas, the joblessness rate thus reached its lowest level since March 2020, when COVID-19 started spreading across the world.

According to Eurostat, there were 13.984 million unemployed persons in the EU in November 2021, including 11.829 million in the euro area.

Compared to October 2021, their number declined by 247,000 in the EU and by 222,000 in the euro area. Compared to November 2020, the number of unemployed persons decreased by 1.659 million in the EU and by 1.411 million in the euro area.

In November 2021, Spain and Greece were the only EU countries to record a double-digit unemployment rate, of 14.1% and 13.4% respectively.

Croatia's unemployment rate, measured by the ILO methodology, dropped to 7.1% from a revised 7.3% in October. An earlier estimate for October indicated an unemployment rate of 7%.

That is the lowest unemployment rate since the outbreak of coronavirus in March 2020, when it was 6.5%. In the February before the pandemic, it was 5.9%.

In November, Croatia thus ranked alongside Finland and Latvia, which had unemployment of 7.2% and 7.3% respectively.

There were 127,000 unemployed persons in Croatia in November, according to Eurostat, or 4,000 fewer than in October. Compared to November 2020, their number decreased by 26,000.

The lowest unemployment rate in November was registered by the Czech Republic, of 2.2%. It was followed by the Netherlands (2.7%), Poland (3%), and Germany (3.2%).

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