Istrian olive oil and Dalmatian olive oil could hold an eternal battle when it comes to deciding just ''who'' is better. While both are excellent and have won awards, there's just something about Istrian olive oil that keeps the international praise rolling in, and the fifteenth Days of Olive Oil being held in Vodnjan, Istria, is drawing praise for Istria's golden liquid from no less than the Croatian President.

As Glas Istre/Danijela Basic-Palkovic writes on the 15th of November, 2019, the President of the Republic of Croatia, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, opened the fifteenth edition of Days of Olive Oil - Giornate dell 'olio d'oliva novello yesterday, which will be held in Vodnjan until Sunday.

At this international event which is featuring more than 100 Croatian and foreign olive oil exhibitors, all lovers of top virgin oils will be able to taste the best products from not only Croatia but the wider region, and the variety and the rich offer will certainly be attractive to various consumer groups, as well as lovers of gastronomy and top products.

Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović said that olive is absolutely part of Istrian culture.

"Olive growing and olive cultivation have been being passed down, especially here in Istria, from people's very beginnings in this area. Olives connect us with the whole Mediterranean and its traditions, and olive oil is an important part of our identity. When I go to restaurants all over the world, everyone boasts about their oils, and I always bring them a bottle of our Croatian oil and I hope that this way we'll be able to spread the word about Croatian olive oil all over the world,'' said President Grabar-Kitarović.

''I try to encourage small and medium-sized enterprises that I believe are the foundation of our economy. I'd recommend everyone, especially olive growers, to promote olive oil a little more on the continent, because I'm afraid that people there are still not yet aware of what kind of gold we're producing,'' said Grabar-Kitarović.

She also stated that she has been following the development of olive growing for years, saying that Croatia can boast a huge shift in quality, but that there is still much work to be done on quantity.

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