About us
The day after participating in the olive oil tasting room, in the restaurant of the Research Institute of Pliva d.d. Snježana Vitez, Krunoslav Kovačević and Radan Spaventi were sitting. You felt the need to do something that will contribute to the promotion of olive oil in Croatia. Their olive groves were located near Šibenik, Makarska, and Koločep, and they lived hundreds of kilometers away from Zagreb. And they knew that they were not the only ones, that there are many others like them who come from Zagreb to cultivate their olive groves in Istria and all the way to Southern Croatia. With this in mind and with the goal of promoting olive oil, on January 24, 2011, the Founding Assembly of the Association was held, where the leadership was elected: Krunoslav Kovačević as the first president of the Association, Snježana Vitez as secretary, and Marija Gradečak-Galović as treasurer. On that occasion, all the necessary administrative actions necessary for the registration and functioning of the association were completed: registration in the Register of Associations of the Republic of Croatia, web domain chosen, MB, OIB, IBAN obtained. The website: www.zagreboliveinstitute.hr, and the email address: info@zagreboliveinstitute.hr have also been defined. Acceptance of new members could begin.
The planned name of the Association was the Zagreb Olive Academy, but due to its legal nature, it was not possible to achieve this, so the name was modified to the Zagreb Olive Institute (ZMI). Although the Zagreb Olive Institute is a non-profit association, the name of the institute was added to the Association so that the aspiration to achieve the original goal would be constantly in front of our eyes: that the Association would one day grow into an institute, more precisely into an institution whose main activity would be scientific, research and educational in nature.
On the wave of that initial enthusiasm, a lot has been done in these ten years. The association grew in the number of members and many activities. Along with professional lectures and participation in various events, she achieved her five-year plan/goal - holding her own event called the Olive Festival in Zagreb.
We are still not an institute... No, only 10 years have passed since our foundation and our work, so for the future to come, who knows...
Basic goals
Association of olive growers living in the City of Zagreb and Zagreb County.
Mutual information of olive growers, transfer of best experiences and practices.
Raising the level of knowledge and understanding of topics related to olives and olive oil (variety selection, planting, pruning, fertilization, irrigation, tillage, protection, harvesting, transportation, processing, preservation, packaging, packaging, labels, storage, etc.).
Promoting the consumption of olives and olive oil in food and general consumption (recipes for meals, desserts, teas, for preserving green or ripe olives, and application in cosmetics and other areas).
Long-term goals
Organizing the analysis of olive oil for members of the Association, which includes free fatty acids (FFA) and peroxide number (PB) and organoleptic/sensory analysis.
Training of own laboratory for olive oil analysis.
Education of examiners in authorized organizations and schools.
Organizing the annual survey and evaluation of olive oil in Zagreb for members of the Association.
Holding lectures, creating and maintaining websites, expanding membership.
Examining other possibilities of the Association's activities for the benefit of members: incentives and funds at the level of the City of Zagreb, Zagreb County, the Republic of Croatia, and EU funds.
Joint performance in the sale of market surpluses.
Other activities related to olives and olive growing for the benefit of the Association, its members, and the wider community.
