May 31, 2023 - The prize from one of the most prestigious competitions in design and advertising, the British D&AD, is in the hands of the Croatian design Studio Tumpic/Prenc. These creatives won the Wood Pencil in the Packaging design category for the design of the olive oil bottle "Istriana" for their client E Pluribus Unum.

As Poslovni writes, D&AD, short for Design and Art Direction, is a British organisation founded in 1962 to promote excellence in design and advertising. Every year it raises the bar of quality in this industry, and it does so with the annual competition, i.e., the D&AD Pencils awards, which are known for the most outstanding creative achievement in the profession.

At this year's edition of this iconic competition, over 300 members of the jury, all leaders of the creative sector chose the winners from as many as 12,243 submitted works from 77 countries around the world, and the Croatian design Studio Tumpic/Prenc is the only representative from Croatia, as well as the region. The Wood Pencil Award declares the "Istriana" project one of the best works of the year in its category, and as such, it becomes an example of creative excellence for future generations who will look to D&AD for their inspiration.

The design of these creatives, which has earned its place among the best of the best, emphasises the connection with the past. Namely, Istrian olive oil was mentioned as a synonym of quality as early as the time of the Roman Empire, but with its disintegration, Istria no longer enjoyed the reputation it had in the Roman period. However, due to its natural prerequisites for the creation of superior olive oil, in the 90s, it gradually regained its status as one of the world's best regions for olive growing.

It could be said that finding fragments of forgotten knowledge gives life to modern olive growing. The bottle also shows the reconstruction of various fragments of the amphora reassembled into a meaningful whole. In addition, once placed in the box, the bottle represents the heart of a specific shape of a Roman amphora from the Istrian area, where olive oil was stored and transported. Also, the orange tone of the terracotta, specially mixed for use on the packaging, contains a percentage of actual Istrian soil.

Upon realising this project, the Studio collaborated with the Italian companies Wine & Industrial Packaging and Tipografia Crivellari 1918. The creative minds behind this winning idea were awarded as part of the D&AD Festival that took place at the end of last week in London, and on this occasion, they declare:

"D&AD is one of the most respected festivals in the industry, so to be recognised next to the big brands present at it, such as Nike, KFC, Mars, Calvin Klein, Google, Burger King, NFL and other Wood Pencil winners, it is certainly a great honour, all the more so because it is a product whose role from the beginning was to promote Istria, i.e. Croatia, with its design and name. This is another way to achieve his goal", concluded the Croatian design Studio Tumpic/Prenc.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated News section.

March 29, 2023 - It is no secret that Croatian olive oil is among the best in the world. And it excelled yet again at the annual competition in New York, with only Italy and Spain, the largest global producers of olive oil, winning more medals.

"Bravo Tom, Bravo Eva!" congratulations were directed at the Croatian olive oil producers, winners of the first prizes at the NYIOOC 2023, report Agroklub/Poslovni.

"Here at last, Oblica," replies Tomislav Duvnjak, head of the St. Ivan Olive Oil Center in Vodice. He doesn't hide his satisfaction that his oil from the local variety is this time decorated with gold. Last year, at this same competition, his extra virgin oil St. Ivan Oblica won the silver medal.

Duvnjak is otherwise known as the man who two years ago encouraged olive growers from Dalmatia, Croatia's largest olive-growing region, to organize a shipment of oils to New York for the world's largest and most prestigious olive oil competition.

Since then, they have recorded the greatest successes. Last year, in competition with 1,244 samples from 28 countries worldwide, Croatian olive oil producers, mainly from Dalmatia and Istria, won 96 awards (69 gold and 27 silver).

"We are third in the world. It is the biggest success so far", commented Duvnjak.

Only Italy (158 medals) and Spain (128) are ahead of Croatia, countries that are also the largest producers of olive oil in the European Union, but also in the world. In terms of olive oil quality, Croatia is followed by the United States of America (94 medals), Greece (79), Turkey (65), Portugal (35)... This year, 1,100 samples from the northern hemisphere countries arrived at the NYIOOC, of which 126 oils came from Croatia (61 from Dalmatia).

With Duvnjak's St. Ivan Oblica, an award also went to the Eva Marija Levantinka brand owned by OPG Eva Marija Čurin from Gdinj on the island of Hvar. It is an extra virgin oil that is characterized by its fruitiness. This OPG was founded in 1997 and is located in the favourable area of Gdinj, on the eastern side of the island of Hvar. The estate comprises five hectares of specialized olive groves with 1,000 trees and overlooks the Adriatic Sea (225 meters).

"All the fruits are hand-picked in the first half of October and processed within 24 hours using a cold extraction system", points out Eva Marija Čurin, who has already proven herself by winning several awards at domestic and international competitions for olive growers and oil producers.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated News section.

September the 2nd, 2022 - Croatian olive growers have warned that there will be higher prices to pay for olive oil this year, much like there are higher prices to pay for just about everything else.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, this summer's harsh drought also affected olive groves and as such Croatian olive growers who rely entirely on the climate for the success of their crop. There will be problems with the olive crop, and if it still doesn't rain significantly until the harvest season, the fruit will remain small, so Croatian olive growers will get less oil, which could see the end product reach a price of 150 kuna per litre, as reported by N1.

"We're producers of organic olive oil and we produce our oil from three varieties of olives. We have monovarieties of olives, olives and levantines and we also preserve the olives,'' explained Ivan Vicenco, the owner of a family farm (OPG).

Although the lack of precipitation is usually somewhat of an ally for olives, the long-term drought has still left its mark. The fruits are smaller and if they don't manage to swell enough by the time picking is due, the result is naturally less oil.

"Our fruits are somewhat dried out, but they're slowly coming back to life after the rain we had the day before yesterday, and in a way we're now counting down the last month until harvest," added Vicenco. What the harvest will look like also depends on the area where the olive grove is located. Those in rugged areas will suffer the greatest losses.

The president of the Cooperative Association of Dalmatia, Lordan Ljubenkov, says: "We're receiving reports that the olive trees have shriveled up due to the long drought, and where there isn't enough soil to retain the moisture, the olives have already started to fall off, with the trees also suffering some damage. Even where there is soil in the olive groves, in another two weeks, those olive groves will lose their fruit as well,"

Because of that, but also owing to the increase in the price of materials and inflation, every drop that Croatian olive growers produce will become precious. A price increase of 20 to 30 percent is unfortunately expected.

"Croatian olive producers will not see their actual work become more expensive, but the packaging will cost more, as will fuel, transport and the means of protecting the olives themselves. Everything about olive oil and the efforts put into the process by Croatian olive growers will become more expensive, and at the same time the final product, extra virgin olive oil, will also cost more," explained Ljubenkov in an interview for N1.

Vicenco, however, has said he refuses to raise prices, believing that some people have adapted too much to relying solely tourism and have made their product more expensive for no reason whatsoever.

"On the other hand, they forget that there are people around us who use olive oil, who are also our fellow citizens and who will be here even after the tourists leave. Perhaps solidarity should come into it and they should try to be a bit more realistic. In my opinion, a price above 130 kuna for a litre of oil is a kind of robbery," said Vicenco.

In the main Split market, prices range from 80 to 100 kuna, depending on the type of packaging used for the oil. In addition to oil, native seedlings can also be purchased.

"Since I'm a producer, I will try to raise my prices as little as possible, but at the end of the day everything depends on the crop. There's been a drought, the harvest looks good, but the fruit is small, there's been no rain, and everything depends on the rain,'' said Josip Ercegovic from Rogoznica. The biggest concern for Croatian olive growers this season is not the crop, but how much oil they will bring to the market due to the drought.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated Made in Croatia section.

July the 15th, 2022 - Postira olive oil made from totally wild olives is earning recognition and winning gold medals. Teo Santic from Postira on the Central Dalmatian island of Brac is one person who has got stuck into this way of doing things.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the story of wild olives was practically forgotten in Croatia, but scientists, experts and other enthusiastic olive growers are bringing it back to the present day and saving it from being totally lost to the often cruel hands of time, reports HRT.

"A wild olive is any olive produced from a seed, i.e. by generative propagation. Within the entire population of wild olives, we distinguish two subgroups, one is the original true wild olive, which are very difficult to find, because they're a far cry from the cultivated ones. Another variant is the so-called ''seed type'', these are olives that also came from seeds, but are the typically the product of a cross between cultivated olives and wild ones,'' explained Dr. Tatjana Klepo.

Teo Santic produces Postira olive oil, he's very much an innovator at heart and he wanted to create something a little bit different, so he decided to restore the process of using wild olives, and now he has about seventy of them.

"I've been making olive oil for ten years now and every year it's been getting better and better, and last year and the year before last, when I had the best possible option for that oil, I won a gold medal," said Teo Santic, the creator of Postira olive oil which stands out from the rest.

Wild olives can be distinguished by their leaves, which are small, thin and prickly branches, and by the fruit, which is small and has very little pulp from which the oil is squeezed.

"That's why they're not cultivated, because they don't have a large amount of oil in the olives, somewhere between five and seven percent can be obtained on average," added Santic.

Wild olive oil is something completely new and different, and it has been very much forgotten about in Croatia, despite its long tradition of making olive oil all along the coast and on the islands. It's tasty, a little tart, but extremely high quality. Despite the fact that these wild olives were forgotten on neglected areas and that they were included in the proper programme only ten years ago, they definitely have their importance.

"They are like a reservoir of genes for resistance; drought resistance, genetic resistance to diseases, both against those diseases which are already present and those that are yet to come, resistance to a whole hosts of parasites and pests, to a whole series of factors that can or have already affected olive growers in the production process,'' said Klepo when explaining how important it is that people like Teo Santic and his Postira olive oil are bringing the use of wild olives back from the brink.

For more, check out Made in Croatia.

May the 28th, 2022 - Croatian olive oil's top quality is recognised throughout the world and has won countless awards in numerous prestigious international competitions. Croatian olive oil has once again wowed in the Big Apple, with Croatia being placed third in terms of the quality of its much loved produce.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, at the recently held New York International Olive Oil Competition, NYIOOC World, Croatia came in third place in terms of the number of medals won, right after Italy and Spain, as reported by Maslina/Olive.

Croatia has outdone itself when it comes to its olive oil yet again by coming third, as last year the country came fourth in this, the largest and most prestigious olive oil competition held in Manhattan, right in the middle of New York, Croatian olive oil also overtook the USA, leaving the Americans in 4th place.

In addition, Croatia is the best in terms of the percentage of success of its reported olive oils. Out of 112 registered samples from across Croatia, 96 of them received medals, representing 86 percent of success, and this is by far the best performance of olive oil from all countries that registered more than 40 of their samples.

Croatian olive oils won a total of 96 medals, of which 66 were gold and 27 were silver. Dalmatian olive growers won the most medals for the Republic of Croatia with their oils - a total of 55 medals.

Admittedly, the highest number of gold medals for Croatia was won, unsurprisingly, by the Istrians this year. Last year the Dalmatians took that place. The Dalmatians won 29 gold medals, while the Istrians took home 37.

Olive growers from Zadar County won a total of 11 awards, of which seven were gold medals and four were silver. Gold: Lepur (2), Bovan, Plastic, Lalin, Vulin and Morovic. Silver: Dr. Vlatkovic (2), Skopic and OP-Ko-milfa.

Olive oils from all over the world competed in this New York competition, and a total of 543 gold and 257 silver medals were awarded globally.

In terms of the number of medals won, Italy came first place with 158 medals, followed by Spain with a total of 128 medals, Croatia took third place with 96 medals, the United States came in fourth place with 94 medals and Greece landed fifth place.

For more, check out Made in Croatia.

May 7, 2022 - Šibenik Catholic school olive oil returned to Croatia with a gold medal at the NYIOOC world competition in New York!

While some may be surprised by this news, the Šibenik Catholic school olive oil connoisseurs believe it was expected, writes Šibenski.hr.

In the competition of oil mills from Italy, Spain, Greece, Morocco, Turkey, New Zealand, Japan, USA, Israel, Tunisia, China, France, Portugal, Cyprus, Lebanon and about twenty oil mills from Croatia, Šibenik was declared the best. Around 1,174 samples were submitted to the competition, which proves that the Šibenik Catholic school produces world-renowned oil.

This whole story is even better because the olive grove is cared for by children through the school cooperative "Školjka". Of course, all with the mentorship of more experienced school employees, primarily the school janitor, Marko Rupić, who spends most of his time in the olive grove, and Šime Petrović, head of accounting, who is in charge of coordinating harvesting and processing.

"There are currently 311 students in the school," says the school principal, sister Mandica Starčević, who revealed the olive grove was once part of the military barracks.

"The whole school is included in the cooperative. In addition to the cooperative, we have several extracurricular activities that allow students to develop their knowledge according to their interests. We also have home economics, robotics, art group and many others. The pandemic has slowed us down a bit in all this, but now we are slowly returning to the usual rhythm," claims the director.

The first trees in the school olive grove were planted almost 30 years ago by soldiers, as there used to be a barracks where the school is located. Then, with the construction of a new part of the school about 13 years ago, the school staff planted new trees, which, it turned out, gave an excellent yield and even better oil.

"Then we planted new plantations, about 110 trees, and now there are about 170 in the olive grove. This year we had a slightly lower yield, but there were years when we knew how to harvest up to three tons of olives. So although the yield was not at the expected level, the oil was of the highest quality," says Šime Petrović, a school employee who, along with the caretaker, Marko, is most responsible for the olive grove.

If it weren't for Ante Duvnjak from the St. John oil mill in Vodice, Petrović claims, they wouldn't have sent their oil to a competition in New York.

"I must emphasize this: he took the initiative, and we agreed to participate in the competition at his urging. He sent samples of olive oil from all over Croatia to the competition, not just ours. The other thing I have to point out is our elementary students. Their involvement and enthusiasm around the olive groves is wonderful; that is the essence of everything," adds Petrović.

The olive grove is dominated by only one variety, oblica. However, the school janitor Marko Rupić said that he is extremely grateful for this. 

"As far as cultivation is concerned, these are olives of exclusively organic origin. We do not use any chemicals and preparations, which nature does. I think that is partly why our oil is so high quality," says Rupić.

"I spend a lot of time in the olive grove because it is a large area. In addition to olives, I also take care of regular mowing, which requires time and effort. We bought a few fruit seedlings, and we may also plan to plant a small vineyard; we will see; one or two more pairs of hands would not be out of the question," Rupić said.

Parasites and irrigation in the olive grove are two problems this hard-working janitor faces. The first problem will be solved by planting lavender, which is known to repel parasites from trees, while the second has yet to find a solution. 

"Parasites and diseases have never been as they are now. We do not use any chemicals; although it might be easier to maintain and protect olives with them, we will not give up on organic farming. All the water that olives get is from what I water or rainwater, and irrigation would be essential to us," concludes Rupić.

The school also does not sell their olive oil and uses it primarily for their own needs or pass it on to those who need it. For example, a group of students arrived from Norway, France and Spain and recently received a bottle as a souvenir. 

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

January 5, 2022 - Key ingredients of the Mediterranean diet are becoming the most recognizable Croatian products in the world.

The pandemic and stagnation in the world market have further emphasized the need for Croatia to focus on its food production. This is especially true for meat and meat products. Nevertheless, the potential certainly exists because according to the calculation of the Faculty of Agriculture in Zagreb, in 2018, the self-sufficiency of the Republic of Croatia in meat production amounted to 70.64%, reports T.portal. 

Croatian Member of the European Parliament and negotiator of the EPP Group for the Committee Opinion on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection on the 'Field to Table' Strategy, Tomislav Sokol, managed to fight for the protection of traditional Croatian products such as kulen and prosciutto.

"The European Union is determined to make the food system healthier and more sustainable. This does not mean giving up our traditional meat products such as Slavonian kulen and Istrian or Dalmatian prosciutto. Moreover, I am sure that our products, known for their top quality and traditional production methods, do not threaten citizens' health. As a member of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection, and as a rapporteur for European citizens, I intervened in the text of the Opinion on the European Commission's Field-to-Table Strategy to protect the production of traditional Croatian products," says Tomislav Sokol.

Croatia has significant production potential in this sector, which opens new economic and development perspectives, especially for the Croatian countryside. Europe must become self-sufficient in producing quality and healthy food, and Croatian agriculture and the food industry must be integral elements of this system.

Sokol ensured that the Mediterranean diet does not qualify as unhealthy in that Strategy. Namely, other political groups in the European Parliament agreed on the text of the Opinion, which would label European, and thus the Mediterranean diet, unhealthy. However, during the negotiations on the specific amendment, Sokol insisted on changing the text of this act, which would mark the European and Mediterranean diet as unhealthy.

"I must admit that I was quite surprised when I noticed in the text that our diet was to be declared unhealthy. Flat and unfounded claims must not occupy space in official documents of the European Parliament. From the beginning, I was clear in my position, and I am glad that I was able to convince other fellow Members of my position. We are proud of our Mediterranean lifestyle and diet that includes the use of fresh foods, fish, fruits and vegetables, and essential olive oil," explains Sokol.

It should be reminded that the 'Field to Table' Strategy defines key priorities for setting up a sustainable and healthy food system, and the fact that the Action Plan accompanying the Strategy envisages the adoption of 27 legislative and non-legislative acts until 2024 shows how complex the implementation of this Strategy will be.

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

January the 3rd, 2022 - Could Croatian olive oil prices rise above 100-110 kuna in 2022? Due to several factors which have contributed to their yield, it seems that could well be the case.

As Slobodna Dalmacija/Misel Kalajzic writes, in Zadar County, the olive harvest for 2021 failed when compared to 2020, especially in the continental and island part of northern Dalmatia, while in the coastal part it being considered to be satisfactory.

The reason for this is primarily the very low temperatures that affected the area during the early part of the month of April (more precisely from the 7th to the 9th of April 2021, when unusual temperatures of up to minus nine degrees Celsius were recorded), and unfavourable conditions at the time of flowering (mainly due to bura wind).

''The estimated yield of olive fruit for the year 2021 is about 2800 tonnes and 3220 hectolitres of oil. The crop is healthy. Harvesting and processing began in the second half of October and so far almost the entire crop has been processed,'' as was explained by B.Sc. Gordana Dragun, Head of Agronomy, Head of the Zadar Service in the Directorate for Professional Support to Agricultural Development.

How much the past year has failed in terms of Croatian olive oil can be seen in comparison with the data from the 2019/2020 season. At that time, 5,500 tonnes of olives were harvested in Zadar County, and 6,600 hectolitres of olive oil were produced, which is almost twice as much as last year.

In Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, 700 tonnes were harvested at that time, in Sibenik-Knin County 1800 tonnes were harvested, in Istria County 4600, in Dubrovnik-Neretva County 6000 tonnes, and in Split-Dalmatia County, as much as 17 thousand tonnes of traditional Mediterranean oilseeds were harvested.

Back in October 2020 alone, 3,515 tonnes were harvested in Zadar County, ie 4,018 hectolitres of oil were produced, and a month later another 3,500 tonnes were removed from the trees and 4,000 hectoliress of oil were obtained from them. Last October, only 800 tonnes were harvested, and in November, 1,200 tonnes of olives were obtained.

In the northern part of the island of Pag (more specifically in Lun and Novalja), which administratively belong to Lika-Senj County, the olive harvest in 2020 failed and a mere 15 tonnes were harvested, all of them coming from the area of ​​Novalja. In Lun, due to the drought that was present in the winter of 2019/20, from spring until June, there was no fertilisation at all.

In Zadar County, despite the hail on May the 2nd, 2020 and the declaration of a natural disaster in the city of Benkovac, as well as a hurricane in the western part of the county (Razanac, Krneza), that year was marked by abundant flowering. Good fertilisation and timely rainfall resulted in a solid olive year there.

Obviously, 2021 will be a year to forget for Zadar's many disappointed olive growers. Croatian olive oil prices are likely to jump as well as a result of all of these factors, but 2020's stocks will also be depleted, as not all processed quantities have been sold yet due to the ongoing situation surrounding the coronavirus pandemic (and the tourist season).

For more, check out Made in Croatia.

October 29, 2021 - The 2021 Croatian olive harvest is in full swing, though oil prices this year could rise by 50% since fewer olives were harvested this season. 

This year's olive harvest did not yield the best results, so olive oil prices could rise up to 50 percent, Slobodna Dalmacija reports on Friday.

The olive harvest in some olive groves is still ongoing, while some traditionally wait for All Saints' Day. In other groves, there is nothing to pick. A cold front after Easter thinned the fruits in the spring when some olive groves were covered with snow. In Dalmatia, 50 percent fewer olives are harvested this season than last year. Since Istrian olive groves have not fared any better, olive growers are announcing higher oil prices - up to 50 percent in Istria.

"The yields and quality of the oil are better than last year, only this year there will be less. This is because when the flower was supposed to turn into fruit, there was a storm and low temperatures, and after that, there was no water, and these are essential components for olives," explains Denis Benčić from Fažana.

Last year's average price of extra virgin olive oil in Istria was around 100 kuna, and now prices of up to 150 kuna are expected.

"It will be better," says Rade Bobanović of Polače, also president of the 'Maslina i Vino' agricultural cooperative.

"As it is, so it is. There is no joy in the olive groves, but we will not grieve either," adds Bobanović. Climate change is taking its toll; the only thing is that workers are now happier because their pay is higher and they harvest less, he jokes, pointing out that last year he paid pickers earned 2.20 kn per kilogram of olives, and now he pays about 4 kuna.

"If they were paid per kilogram, they would not get even 100 kuna per day," he added, noting that the yield per tree is 30 percent lower than last year, which was also one of the worst, and not even 30 percent compared to the average olive potential. Depending on the micro-location, for example, some places bore fruit above average, some not at all. On the Biograd coast, the branches shoot from the genus, and in the Benkovac area, which is often significant in terms of yield, it is decimated.

"Yields, however, are better everywhere than last year, which means that the oil will be of exceptional quality. But anyway, it is calculated that we are lucky if we have an ideal harvest every fourth or at least every sixth year," said Bobanović.

His olive groves are also organic, even more demanding and expensive to maintain. However, in Croatia, organic extra virgin olive oil is not yet perceived as better quality than that obtained in commercial or integrated production, so the price of all these Dalmatian oils is the same.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

December 15, 2020 - In ten days, Brac locals collected 1,515 liters of homemade olive oil for health workers in Croatia on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus. A huge success!

The idea came from Sutivan, and it was accepted by all Brac municipalities and the Tourist Board, which organized the action, reports 24 Sata.

Brac locals thus donated the most valuable thing they have, oil from their olive groves, which came from all corners of the island.

After consultations with the largest Croatian COVID hospital in Dubrava, the oil will be delivered to several medical centers throughout Croatia.

To make the gift to Croatian health workers even more beautiful, all the labels on the bottles were painted by students from elementary schools and Brac kindergartens:

"We wanted to brighten up the holidays for those who have the hardest time fighting this pandemic, and that is our doctors, nurses, and other medical staff."

An announcement from the Bol Tourist Board on November 30: 

"To make the holiday season more cheerful, a humanitarian action was launched where Brac citizens can donate their olive oil to the Clinical Hospital Centers in Croatia, or to the hardworking people who work in them, especially in these challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic. All towns on the island of Brac are included in the action, and the Tourist Boards take over the coordination," announced the Municipality of Bol Tourist Board.

"If you want to participate in this humanitarian action 'Brac oil for hardworking people' (or in the Brac dialect, 'Bročko uje za vridne jude'), please bring the amount of olive oil you would like to donate (minimum 1 liter) to the Tourist Board of Bol office, from Monday, November 30, 2020, to Friday, December 4, 2020, from 8:30 am to 2:00 pm.

It would be best if the oil is packaged in glass, but it is not necessary. Place your labels on the packaging, and if you don't have any, the children from the "Little Prince" Kindergarten will draw them for you for this occasion.

After the collection is completed, olive oil will be distributed to the Clinical Hospital Centers in Croatia, and we will, of course, inform you about the exact destinations and quantities.

Let our oil bring joy and make the holidays more beautiful for all who care about our health and to all who, unfortunately, will spend these holidays separated from their loved ones.

"A heartfelt thank you to everyone who will respond to this truly commendable action!" the Bol Tourist Board said on November 30. 

To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.