ZAGREB, 8 June, 2021 - Nine percent of Europeans and seven percent of Croatians have been misled into buying counterfeit products, according to a survey released by the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) on Tuesday.

The study, entitled "European Citizens and Intellectual Property", shows that consumers find it difficult to distinguish between genuine and fake products.

Nearly one in ten Europeans claimed that they were misled into buying counterfeits, but there were considerable differences between EU member states. 19% of Bulgarians, 16% of Romanians and 15% of Hungarians said they were deceived, compared to 2% of Swedes and 3% of Danes.

Croatia was below the EU average, with 7% of its citizens saying they were misled into buying counterfeit products.

According to Eurostat, over 70% of Europeans shopped online in 2020, and uncertainty regarding counterfeit products has become a growing concern for consumer protection, the study showed.

Counterfeit products represent 6.8 % of EU imports worth €121 billion and impact every sector, from cosmetics and toys, wine and beverages, electronics and clothing to pesticides and pharmaceutical products. They pose serious risks to the health and safety of citizens as they usually do not comply with quality and safety standards.

The study says that the worldwide trade in counterfeit pharmaceutical products has been estimated at €4 billion. Digital piracy also represents a highly lucrative market for infringers. Just in the area of internet protocol television (IPTV), €1 billion of unlawful revenue is generated every year by the
supply and consumption of copyright-infringing digital content in the EU, harming creators and
legitimate businesses.

Counterfeiting affects not only consumers, but it also causes considerable damage to the EU
economy, notably small and medium enterprises (SMEs). One in four SMEs and 21.7% of SMEs in Croatia said they suffered damage on account of intellectual property rights infringement, according to the study.

For more about business in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

June 8, 2021 - After a year in which several events had to be canceled or postponed due to the pandemic, the first Istria Wine and Walk made a successful comeback marked by sold-out tickets and 450 participants who enjoyed the best of what Istrian wine and grapes can offer.

Tasting top wines and food, a relaxed atmosphere, and hours of enjoying the beauties of northwestern Istria marked the spring Wine & Walk, reports Turističke Priče. It has been shown that everyone is eager for such events after various restrictions and bans due to the coronavirus pandemic. This is supported by the fact that the tickets were sold out in less than 24 hours.

This is not surprising as this was the first Istria Wine and Walk since the pandemic was declared. The event was ideal, as it was possible to ensure compliance with all epidemiological measures.

Photo: Istria Wine and Walk

The inspiring walk was attended by 450 participants who were divided into groups accompanied by a guide. The starter kit of the event, which included a tasting glass and a folder, this year's first Istria Wine and Walk event was "conveniently" enriched with a protective mask.

The walk started from the Aleksandar Rukavina Gallery in Brtonigla, and every kilometer and a half the participants were greeted by a new wine & food station with an offer of local Istrian producers and caterers. The offer included wines Benčić, Novacco, Coronica, Cattunar, Cuj, Veralda. The gourmet offer includes Circolo Bar, OPG Radošević, All event, Primizia Food & Wine, Konoba Morgan, OPG Buršić, Veralda. The length of the walk was nine kilometers, and the winemakers, in addition to offering their wines, introduced the participants to viticultural practices and oenological techniques in the production of their wines.

Photo: Istria Wine and Walk

Hikers and wine lovers enjoyed a panoramic view of Brtonigla and the sea from Monte Marzari, visited the cheese factory and farm Radošević from where they had a panoramic view of another Istrian pearl - Buje, the walk stretched to the Nature Park Škarline, wine cellar Cattunar, Tavern Morgan, and the Veralda wine cellar. Once again, intoxicated by the sun and a beautiful day, the walkers returned to the center of Brtonigla where they enjoyed the magic of this Istrian town.

Photo: Istria Wine and Walk

Istrian wines and grapes are among the best in the world, and you can find more information about them in Total Croatia’s Guide to Croatian Wine HERE. You can also learn more about what the Istrian peninsula cities and towns like Pula, Rovinj, Umag, Motovun, and more can offer you on your next trip, in Total Croatia HERE. Total Croatia’s articles are now available in your language!

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

June 8, 2021 - For all those looking to put the troubled past and stress behind them, the Weekend for Health event in Ivanić-Grad may be the solution. The city's tourist board has organized a full program of relaxation, exercise, and meditation activities on June 12 and 13.

After several months of isolation, which affected the physical and mental health of people, it is time for citizens to relax and "reset" in Ivanić-Grad. A series of free activities aimed at health, as part of the Weekend for Health event, will be held at the Zelenjak Sports Park next to the Naftalan Special Hospital and at their new swimming pools, in compliance with all epidemiological measures, reported Turističke Priče today.

Those who want to swim for free can do so on Saturday and Sunday, from 9 am to 7 pm at the new SB Naftalan pools. For those younger, from 7 to 10 years, a swimming school is organized both days, while adults will be able to enjoy functional training, aqua aerobics, and senior Pilates. In addition to swimming pools, sugar and blood pressure measurements will be organized in the morning, as well as a series of lectures and workshops on the topic of active aging, running, stretching, aromatherapy, how to cook for children, and more.

Ivanić-Grad Tourist Board

On both days of the Weekend for Health event, people of all ages will be able to rent props for table tennis, badminton, bowling, play tennis on the tennis courts, and have a good time. The youngest ones can join the workshop for making puppets, and there will also be acting for children from 10 am. From 4 pm, they are provided with entertainment by dancing or playing on the training ground. Adults can relax during this time with breathing exercises, sun salutations, or a gong bath. If you are not ready for exercise and an active weekend, you can watch the Croatian Junior Crossbow Championship, children's handball tournament, or streetball. Explore Ivanić and find out which are the three black gold medals of Moslavina on an interesting educational walk with a guide on Saturday and Sunday at 11 am.

You can take a break with healthy snacks in Caffe bar Naftalan 2, Dribbling Food Caffe, or Café bar Zelenjak. Local products can be found at a small fair of local family farms. Enjoy an open-air concert by Jelena Mesarić and Saša Tadić by the old pool on Saturday night from 8 pm.

In order for us all to remain healthy, safe, and happy, care must be taken to adhere to epidemiological measures. Therefore, the number of seats in some groups is limited and it is advisable to reserve your seat in advance. For group training organized by the Special Hospital Naftalan, you can do it by e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by phone on 01 2834 533. For other content, there is an e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or number 01 2881 591. In case there is bad weather, events will be unfortunately canceled.

There will be no shortage of rich events for the rest of the month. A weekend for wellness and recreation awaits you at the Petek Excursion Site and the Sport Hotel on June 19 and 20. Next, June 26, a weekend in nature, ie hiking in the Marča forest and a visit to the Kezele Rural Tourism. Detailed information about entertainment events is available on Facebook and the website of the Ivanić-Grad Tourist Board.

For more on lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

June 8, 2021 - After more than four decades of successfully organizing an enriching cultural program aimed at people of all ages, Gorica Evenings will celebrate its 45th edition in style with concerts, cinema, theater, art, and more in the open air from this Thursday 10 to June 20 in Velika Gorica.

For the 45th year in a row, the Gorica Evenings have enriched the tourist and cultural offer of Velika Gorica, but also of the Zagreb County in general. The traditional event is organized by the Velika Gorica Public Open University in cooperation with associations and other Velika Gorica organizations, reports Turističke Priče.

In addition to a diverse cultural program, Gorica evenings are a combination of open-air concerts, theater performances, open-air cinemas, children's programs, and more. This year's 45th edition of the event runs from 10 to 20 June at two locations in the center of Velika Gorica, in Dr. Franjo Tuđman and Stjepan Radić Square, brings a rich program for children and adults.

Interesting plays are intended for theater audiences and children, and the first is scheduled by Tonka Bontonka Scene Gorica. This play for children will also be the first event of the 45th Gorica Evenings. There are also lectures for art history lovers at the Galženica Gallery, as well as performances, which will be presented to the public by participants in the Drama Studio and Guitar Course of the Velika Gorica Public Open University.

The Gorica evenings will be enhanced by klapas, which will present their acapella singing repertoire. It will be at a meeting that will serve as an overture for the Omis Festival. The youngest will show their creativity at workshops for children.

Fans of the seventh art will come to theirs every Wednesday. Namely, Dr. Franjo Tuđman Park will host the Open-Air Summer Cinema, which will show Hollywood blockbusters, animated dubbed films, and comedies. Screenings are scheduled for 6 and 8 p.m.

The highlight of the Gorica evenings will be, as always, open-air concerts. In addition to Gorizia's Mungos and the already traditional VG Blues, Rock & Country festival, Klapa Kampanel and the popular Bosutski bećari will sing and play.

For more on lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

June 8, 2021 - The tenth edition anniversary of the Croatian Travel Festival will be held in Šibenik from June 10 to 13. Dino Rađa and Ivan Pažanin will be guests at the festival for the first time, who will be in the beautiful ambiance of St. Michael's Fortress.

As reported by HRTurizam.hr, the Croatian Travel Festival celebrates its tenth edition this year, and on behalf of the organizers, the travel agency "Croatian Travelers Club", the director and initiator of the festival, Nikola Baraka, said he was proud that this unique concept has grown from year to year and became recognized as a meeting place for travelers and travel writers with an audience that gets to know the world by listening to their stories and watching photos and videos.

"The Croatian Travel Festival has managed to include the city of Šibenik in the travel calendar of many of our famous travelers and travel writers, many of whom return to it from year to year, and this, given how much time these people spend outside Croatia, is a great success, and a great promotion for the destination", concludes Baraka.

This year's edition of the festival will traditionally open with talks with the people of Šibenik on Thursday, June 10. Nino Rak, Darko Gulin, and some klapas from the famous klapa Šibenik, will be the first guests of the festival, on the lawn in front of the club Azimut, which will be the location of the opening, but there will also be other gatherings during the four days. At the same location, Mija Dropuljić, Željko Garmaz and Maja Sajler Garmaz, Tomica Kristić, and the company from the "Putoklinci" platform will tell their travel stories in a conversation with the presenter Vlatka Vužić, and also a couple of people already known to the public: Jurica Galić Juka and Goran Blažević, both of whom will return to the festival with new stories.

On Friday, on this most beautiful stage, Croatia's great basketball player Dino Rađa will share his impressions from traveling during a successful sports career, but also from traveling the world on a motorcycle. On the same evening, the audience will find out what "Love around the world" looks like. This story will be brought to Šibenik by the famous Croatian travel writer and photographer Davor Rostuhar, who, wanting to answer the question "What is love?", Spent his "honeymoon" on the road with his wife.

On Saturday, June 12, the guest at the fortress is the playwright and nomad Jasen Boko, well known to the festival audience since the first edition of the festival. This year, he brings a touch of India to Šibenik, but also impressions from his numerous other travels, which he incorporated into travel books. Chef Ivan Pažanin, who is visiting the festival for the first time, will discover how travel affects his "gastronomic expression and creations". Talks with all of them will be led by journalist legend and travel lover Goran Milić, a guest at the festival's first edition.

The festival will also host the eighth award ceremony of the "Dijana Klarić" award, in five categories: best travelogue, best travelogue photography, best travelogue film, best project, and traveler of the year.

You can follow all the detailed information about the festival program, events, and tickets on the social networks Croatian Travel Festival and the Croatian Travel Club (Facebook and Instagram), while you can see the program of the Croatian Travel Festival here.

Follow the latest on flights to Croatia HERE and the latest travel updates and COVID-19 news from Croatia HERE.

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

June the 8th, 2021 - The tourist season is rapidly approaching and all eyes are firmly fixed on just what that will do for the domestic economy as the epidemiological situation at any given time continues to hold all the cards. With that being said, Croatian GDP depends on one other important factor, too.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Ana Blaskovic writes, the announcement that the Croatian economy fell in the first quarter of 2021 by the least it has fallen since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis, more precisely by a mere 0.7%, was welcomed as an overture to recovery. In the turn towards the ''plus'' analysts' expectations of a significantly better performance remained firmly in the background. That means that the targeted 5.2 percent growth for 2021 (and all of the consequent revenue) will be a rather tight calculation that will focus not only on a good summer season but also peaceful autumn.

Most economists will say that it is difficult to forecast things for this year according to the first three quarters, even without the coronavirus pandemic, as Mystic Meg isn't around to do that job. Of the six analysts spoken to by Hina, three expected growth in the range of 0.7 and 4%, two expected stagnation, and one expected a decline of 6 percent.

"It's a bit hasty to come to conclusions based solely on the first quarter. Even with the data we have for the second, the picture is blurry because you have a base which is either too high or too low,'' explained Zeljko Lovrincevic from the Institute of Economics, emphasising that in the first three months of 2020, there were no coronavirus issues to really speak of, and the other three were marked by lockdowns.

"In the first six months, Croatian GDP growth is likely to be 3 to 3.5% annually. At this point, it's certain that the summer season could be good, and growth in the third quarter could reach 8-9%. With that being said, autumn remains uncertain and the last three months should have a similar dynamic to reach the planned 5.2% year-on-year. This will be possible only without an autumn wave of the virus and new restrictions,'' believes Lovrincevic, who is worried about the speed of the vaccination rollout. In order to curb the epidemic (and save the tourist season), the government has announced that 50-55% (out of 3.36 million) adults in Croatia will be vaccinated by the end of June.

23 days are left until June comes to an end, and according to the CNIPH, by June the 3rd, 1.317 million Croatian residents (39.1%) had been vaccinated with one dose, and 537,965 of them had received both, accounting for only 16% of adults. While the mass vaccination programme finally became operational after an amateur and frankly embarrassing start, a sharp drop in people being interested enough to get themselves registered for it has been noticed, meaning that the possibility of vaccinated people without the need for registration or an invitation is now a real and very likely possibility.

"Macro figures for this year are open due to the pandemic, but thanks to the relatively strong recovery of tourism, growth should be good in the 3rd and 4th quarters. Our expectations are a 5% increase in Croatian GDP in 2021 and 5.5% in 2022,'' says PBZ Croatia osiguranje macroeconomist Hrvoje Stojic, who forecasts a 4.5% budget deficit for 2021.

With a good tourist season, indicators for optimism are the growing share of exports of goods in Croatian GDP growth, stronger growth in investment and construction activities, European Union (EU) money and good indicators of personal consumption.

"If tourism surprises us and rises above our expectations, the forecasts could be adjusted upwards, so it makes more sense to talk about the direction in which the economy is moving than about the final speed of recovery, which can still vary," explained Stojic. RBA chief economist Zrinka Zivkovic Matijevic also points out that autumn is uncertain.

"There's a question of new strains, vaccinations, the duration of immunity… But I believe that, even if unfavourable scenarios come to be, Croatia will respond as before, with relatively mild measures and wouldn't just close shopping centres,'' she said, explaining this in terms of consumption and indirect taxes.

"It's not too easy to forecast, but we assume that the normalisation of movement will continue. That's why we remain with the forecast of 5.1% growth in 2021,'' she says.

The combination of the lower vaccination coverage of the population and the influx of millions of foreign tourists from countries with a diverse epidemiological picture, not to mention the confirmation of the Indian variant of coronavirus in Croatia, is understandably worrying.

Although Croatia is entering the summer with the first rebalance this year, the Minister of Finance announced the autumn reshuffling, counting on a clearer post-season picture.

With Croatian GDP projected, Zdravko Maric has a current target of 17.1 billion kuna (4.3% of Croatian GDP) of the central government deficit and 3.8% of the general government deficit.

This is a fragile balance on which a lot depends: the room for maneuver for measures to help the economy, the nation's credit rating, the implementation of the euro, all the way to the payment of salaries and pensions.

For more, follow our lifestyle section.

June the 8th, 2021 - Sasa Bernobic of the Istrian OH Wines winery does things a bit differently than one might expect, and he has put the ever-famed German production skills he was educated in into proper practice.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marta Duic writes, although the wine world is often associated with terms such as family business and tradition, OH Wines winery has a completely different story, from the approach, the method of production, to the label and the name itself.

This is a winery in the municipality of Vizinada, in an ideal position between Mediterranean and continental Istria, and Sasa Bernobic produces wines according to the rules of the "German school".

“OH Wines was created back in 2015 on the modern idea of ​​a market accompanied by a different way of producing wine and olive oil, but also a different way of producting the very design itself. I wanted to stand out from a large group of markets by gathering practical and professional experiences from other parts of Europe and from across the rest of the world. So, I adapted my wine production to the German production model, my olive oil to that used by the Italians and the Spaniards, and the design to my own model where I simply reversed the mental circuit in people and did something unusual in design for the world of wine,'' Ssas Bernobic explained.

Bernobic claims that the "German school" of white wine production is the strongest in the world and has no competition, and is based on the accuracy of the data and extremely high "purity" in numbers when we talk about microbiology.

Clean numbers

"It was this precision and accuracy that led me to create a new style of wine that is different from the competition, and with that same new style of wine I stimulated the imaginations of some of the greatest wine lovers. Germany has extremely difficult conditions for wine production, and yet they manage to keep up with the world's largest wines easily.

They succeeded because by choosing the exact date of harvest and treatments in the cellars, they managed to create the perfect wine in a very harsh climate. As far as olive oil is concerned, we're still learning here, we're in constant contact with Italian and Spanish scientists who have introduced me to new methods and styles in production,'' revealed Sasa Bernobic.

Back during the 2020 harvest, they launched the first Croatian branded olive oil produced with a different technique. It's a process which involves technological processing and is called denocciolato, in which the olive is pitted to achieve a higher nutritional value and a fuller taste of the oil. Production is much more expensive, and the amount of the final product is much smaller. The whole process was done in Italy..

“When you’re first getting into some things, it gives you a huge market advantage and the market loves you. That was exactly my goal - to create something new and different. What made me especially happy was that this oil was sold out in advance, mostly going off to the kitchens of private customers, and partly to Michelin restaurants in Austria and Germany,'' stated Sasa Bernobic.

They currently have five hectares of vineyards and 1.5 hectares of olive groves, and offer five wine labels and a limited series of sparkling wine produced by 200 bottles a year of Teran. The winery also has a tasting room, and although about 80 percent of their sales are based on the German and Austrian markets, they're slowly moving towards a goal in which both local Croatian sales and foreign exports are half and half.

An imaginatively created name...

The OH Wines brand name is based on three segments - it boasts the name of the Ohnici microlocality where vineyards and olive groves are located, OH is a carboxyl group of ethanol in the logo of each wine that signifies a modern approach, and the third part refers to the reaction they want to provoke - that OH experience when one tries the taste of something of high quality.

"Our customers are mostly tourists who spend their summers in Istria, and lately we're also becoming more and more interesting to local wine lovers, mostly people from Zagreb. We work with a very small number of restaurants, but hopefully there will be more interest from them in the future. This year we applied for a wine envelope with which we want to completely modernise the cellar and speed up the process of harvesting and processing grapes, and the conversion of vineyards and the renewal of agricultural machinery is also in the works,'' concluded Sasa Bernobic.

For more, follow Made in Croatia.

June the 8th, 2021 - Damir Vandjelic, the director of the Reconstruction Fund, has spoken out about the length of time the reconstruction process following the earthquakes of 2020 is taking, adding that things need to be streamlined and sped up significantly.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Suzana Lepan Stefancic/VL writes, Damir Vandjelic openly stated recently that the reconstruction process after the 2020 earthquakes was proceeding much too slowly and that, when looking at how it began and the speed of those beginnings, he is struggling to believe that it will accelerate. Speaking on the matter for N1, he said that the demolition of three houses according to the requests for post-earthquake reconstruction is starting only this week.

"In order for excavators to come out to the streets, according to the Law on Reconstruction, people need to submit their respective requests to the ministry. The Ministry has 11,100 requests, of which 18 decisions came to the Fund, and a total of 155 acts came from the Ministry.

The difference between 155 and 18 is actually the documentation that we obtain in the administrative procedure for the ministry, meaning the gross area of ​​the buildings, the assessment of the construction and the like,'' he explained.

"On Friday, we signed three decisions on the selection of contractors, and next week the removal of three family houses in the epicentre of the March 2020 Zagreb earthquake, in the Markusevac area, should finally begin. Now there are only three, but 20 are reportedly in preparation,'' he added.

Damir Vandjelic made no bones about his feelings on things going at Croatia's infuriatingly typical snail's pace, and reiterated his position that the reconstruction is proceeding too slowly for Vecernji list.

"Yes, exactly. Over last three weeks we've been getting just two decisions a week. On 19,000 buildings, just two decisions, that just isn't very fast. The processing of peoples' requests needs to be sped up, and I'd even dare to suggest that the Law on Reconstruction should be improved in some segments.

Therefore, the processing of these requests must be done much more quickly, not just two decisions per week. It can be accelerated, here in the Fund we've shown that we can do about twenty procurements a day, so I think it would be alright for them to throw out about 50 decisions a week,'' Damir Vandjelic explained.

For more, follow our dedicated lifestyle section.