Travnik cheese will soon receive a certificate of protected geographical origin, which will strengthen its identity and market position.
As announced at a press conference held on Wednesday in the Travnik Municipality building, the certification process, conducted in collaboration with the Food Safety Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), has been successfully completed, and the issuance of the official protection of the geographical origin of Travnik cheese is expected soon.
The Mayor of Travnik, Kenan Dautovic, stated that this is the first geographical protection of its kind in the Travnik municipality, aimed at protecting agricultural production and contributing to rural tourism, which, as he emphasized, is planned to be developed on the eastern slopes of Mount Vlasic in the near future.
He added that they will continue to protect both products and animals uniquely native to the Travnik area.
“We will ensure that Travnik cheese is no longer produced across Europe and BiH, but instead will be focused on our local producers, which will in turn allow for increased production. Through proper protective measures, we aim to bring this product to the European market. Additionally, we will offer tourists a unique and authentic experience at the “mountain farms”, specially prepared for them to witness sheep herding, milking, and the making of cheese and other products,” Dautovic said.
Also speaking at the conference was Harun Lozo, chairman of the Municipal Commission for the Protection of Geographical Origin, who emphasized that the entire process is the result of scientific research, and he also highlighted that geographical origin labels have become a focal point of interest in recent decades due to growing consumer concerns about food safety.
“The certification of Travnik cheese will not only meet those demands but will also boost consumer confidence in our products. This protection assures consumers that they are purchasing an authentic product from a specific geographical region, where traditional production methods are preserved,” Lozo concluded.
On behalf of agricultural producers, entrepreneur Vahid Skrobo stated that the certification adds value to the product and strengthens consumer trust, allowing producers to increase their livestock and milk production, and ensuring enough milk for the processing industry to expand product distribution.
He also expressed satisfaction that with the protection of Travnik cheese, there will no longer be Danish, Turkish, Dutch, or other foreign-made cheeses labeled as Travnik cheese in global retail chains.
The Travnik cheese protection project was carried out in cooperation with the Institute for Food Technology of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at the University of Sarajevo (UNSA), and the initiative was supported by the Ministry of Agriculture, Water Management, and Forestry of the Central Bosnia Canton (CBC).
