15th European
Rovinj, Istria region, Croatia
27 – 29 October 2025
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PROGRAMME OF THE
15TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF EUROPEAN SMALL CHEESE MAKERS AND ANNUAL ASSEMBLY OF THE FACE NETWORK

LANGUAGE: THE OFFICIAL LANGUAGE OF THE CONFERENCE IS ENGLISH.

PROGRAM
Prijevod na hrvatski

1st Day, 27 October

Farm and Dairy visits
Two farms and one dairy per technical tour
08:00 – 9:00
Handing out accreditations (for those who arrive a day earlier, it is possible to hand out accreditations on the evening of October 26th – we will set up a table in front of the Maslina hall, Hotel EDEN, MAISTRA
9:00 - 18:00
Cheese excursions (5 different tours), departure by bus from the hotel EDEN, MAISTRA parking, 2 people to look after the group and water will be provided on the each bus
previous registration is required
19:30 – 21:00
Dinner at one of the restaurants in town
previous registration required

2nd Day, 28 October

9:00 – 9:30
Welcome speeches and opening of the conference (Maslina hall, hotel EDEN)
Conference
8 topics (15 – 20 min presentation by the lecturer and 10 min discussion by topic), Maslina hall, Hotel EDEN
09:30 – 09:50
FACE network presentation – President Kerstin Jürss (Sweden)
09:55 – 10:15
Expert support for cheesemakers in the Republic of Croatia – MP / SirCro (Croatia)
10:20 – 10:40
Cheeses in the tourist offer of Istria – AZRRI (Croatia)
10:45 – 11:05
Example of good practice: Direct sales on the farm – Lucija Gartner (Slovenia)
11:10 – 11:30
Attractive dairy products for consumers - Prof. Dr. Sc. Milna Tudor Kalit, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb (Croatia)
11:35 – 12:05
Coffee break
12:05 – 12:25
Traditional values of Croatian indigenous cheeses - Prof. Dr. Sc. Samir Kalit, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Zagreb (Croatia)
12:30 – 12:50
Pag cheese – protection (PDO), sales, marketing – President of the Pag Cheese Producers Association (Croatia)
12:55 – 13:15
Example of good practice: Cheeses in your own tourist offer – Romina Zadravec (Croatia)
12:15 – 13:35
Promotional and other activities of the FACE working group Marketing & Promotion (Italy)
14:00 – 15:00
Lunch (Eden Hotel restaurant)
previous registration required
15:30 – 17:30
Annual meeting of the FACE network, Maslina hall, hotel EDEN
15:30 – 17:30
Tourist tour of Rovinj – participants will be divided into several groups with tour guides, departure by feet in front of the hotel
previous registration required
18:00 – 19:00
Tasting and consumer evaluating of two attractive and innovative products: Donkey milk ice cream and Powerbiotic made from organic goat milk under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Sc. Rajka Božanić, Faculty of Food and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb (in the open space in front of the Maslina hall, hotel EDEN)
19:00 – 21:00
Cheese buffet - tasting of cheeses from different countries participating in the conference – (in the open space in front of the Maslina hall, hotel EDEN)

3rd Day, 29 October

8:00 – 10:00
Check-out from the rooms for participants leaving
8:00 - 11:00
FACE working group meetings (hall Maslina, hotel EDEN, MAISTRA)
- free time for participants who remain and are not members of working groups
11:30 – 16:00
Optional tourist tours around the heartland and/or coast of Istria for participant who stay - several excursions and their prices will be suggested, and the departure will be organized in front of the hotel EDEN, MAISTRA -
previous registration required