Ivana Dežmalj

Description

OPG Dežmalj is located in Posedarje. Dražen and Ivana inherited this family farm from his parents, and Ivana has also become its manager. We started producing natural cosmetics in 2015. Seeing the potential in underutilized and neglected agricultural land, as well as the local market—since the farm is in Posedarje, a tourist destination—it made sense to restore and utilize current opportunities while expanding them in line with our inclinations. The idea for producing natural cosmetics was born out of a love for nature and plants.

We have a 1-hectare olive grove, and we are currently establishing a modern ecological plantation of almonds and medicinal herbs on 1.5 hectares. The funds for financing the project were drawn from the EU Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, specifically from Sub-measure 6.1, 'Support for starting a business for young farmers,' amounting to 50,000 euros. The co-financing share is 90% EU and 10% Republic of Croatia.

The investment covers the cultivation of neglected land, the purchase of seedlings, the installation of a solar-powered drip irrigation system, and the purchase of a used tractor. We chose almonds because we believe they are in high demand on the market, and we also have a great desire to produce a cosmetic line based on the oil from our organic almonds.

Our goal is focused on agrotourism. We want to inspire tourists with innovative ideas for something new. On our plantation, located on a hill above Posedarje in an attractive position with a view of the Novigrad Sea, we plan to build a House of Medicinal Herbs with a mini distillery, where our visitors and tourists can learn to make their own natural cosmetics and take them home as a gift.

The first step in cosmetic production is harvesting herbs. It is necessary to choose the right moment for harvesting each herb, as only the highest-quality herbs can produce a top-tier cosmetic product. Harvesting wild medicinal herbs and staying on Velebit, which is a true treasure trove, is a real pleasure. The plants we use for our cosmetics include immortelle, lavender, St. John’s wort, marigold, yarrow, sage, plantain, self-heal, wild carrot, ivy, daisy, comfrey, and Gotu kola. During harvesting, it is truly important to be conscientious and pick in a way that ensures we can admire these plants in the same place next year.

After harvesting, the herbs are dried and extracted in our extra virgin olive oil, but we also use other oils such as coconut and raspberry. This gives us a macerate, a premium base for making our cosmetics. For the water phase of our cosmetics, we use lavender, immortelle, and chamomile hydrolates, as well as aloe vera gel.

We also use other active and medicinal ingredients such as natural vitamins E and C, hyaluronic acid, allantoin, and the highest-quality natural emulsifiers. Finally, we add premium essential oils such as immortelle, lavender, chamomile, myrtle, geranium, and cypress. The entire production process takes place at our facility in Posedarje.

Ivana is professionally trained as an olive grower and cultivator of medicinal herbs.

We educate ourselves through workshops and professional literature and recipes, and we also apply the knowledge and experience we gain in the production of natural cosmetics.

Automatically translated from Croatian