INTERVIEW Leo Lisjak: We produce the first Croatian blueberry gin!

As blueberries and blueberry products are not very popular, especially in Croatia, this family farm has a great unique offer.

The Plitvice Times has a new partner – Eco blueberries Lisjak. As blueberries and blueberry products are not very popular, especially in Croatia, this family farm has a great unique offer. From fresh fruit and jams to gin and soon chocolate. Check it out in our webshop.

We interviewed them so they can present themselves to you and tell you more about their work and products.

Who came up with the idea of growing blueberries and started a business?

Back in 2010, on my way to work, I stopped at a retail chain and found blueberries there. Since I never had a chance to try blueberries, I bought one small scoop. They were great! And that’s where the idea was born to plant a few shrubs for ourselves. At that time we had a small plot of land, on which we planned to build a house, but we still decided to plant blueberries. In the spring of 2011, we planted several shrubs, 1000 of them😁. From the very beginning, we knew that we wanted organic farming because it is very important to us. We love nature and want to treat it nicely because it feeds us. From the very beginning, we started serious production with anti-hail nets, irrigation system and everything else needed for production. Later, everything was upgraded and added. Today we have planted 3500 bushes, and in addition to fresh products, we also sell all kinds of blueberry products that people can buy from you on the webshop.

How come you chose blueberries?

Blueberries are very grateful plants if you take good care of them and give them a lot of attention. As I have already mentioned, we are engaged in organic farming and thus do not pollute the environment and the soil around the blueberries, so they are grateful to us and give us a lot of delicious blueberries.

Your farm is very lively. What can be found there?

In our orchard, we try to close the whole natural cycle. So on the farm, we have racing ducks that protect the plants from snail infestations. We have several beehives that pollinate plants. On the farm, you can still find hives with solitary bees and hotels for beneficial insects. There is our puppy Harley, who loves to dig and hunt voles and at the same time protects blueberries from the invasion of these pests. There is our daughter Frida who helps us with everything, and she likes to pull weeds the most. Wife Jasminka does marketing, takes care of the customers and with everything else that needs to be done, still finds time to bake delicious blueberry cakes. And I handle everything else that’s needed, from working with larger machines to dealing with paperwork.

How did you form your offer and what does the product production process look like?

Our product offer is very diverse. When it is the season of fresh blueberries (approx. 15.6.-15.8.), Then we mostly sell fresh fruits. In the autumn, we start preparing all the other products. The most popular are organic blueberry jams with and without sugar. Among the newer products, there are organic lavender and blueberry syrup, sweet and spicy blueberry sauce, blueberry topping and 100% cocoa that won everyone who tried it. I must mention that all these products won gold and silver diplomas in the evaluations.

Of the alcoholic beverages, we offer blueberry liqueur and the first Croatian blueberry gin. We have another very popular alcoholic beverage in preparation, but until we perfect it, we will not reveal which one it is 😉. A large range of chocolate products is also being prepared, which should be ready for our customers in a few months.

How has the Corona pandemic affected your business?

Fortunately, so far we have not had any problems with placement during the pandemic.

Tell us something about the future of blueberries and the development of your company?

In the future, we plan to expand plantations and the product range. Also, improve production. We have a great desire to fully switch to biodynamic breeding according to the methods of Dr. Rudolf Steiner.

Check out the Eco Blueberries Lisjak offer:

 

Blueberry Gin, 0.7l

Blueberry liqueur, 0.7l

Eco lavender / blueberry syrup, 0.5l

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