Istrian sheep cheese gets official protection status across Europe

(Photo credit: Ministarstvo poljoprivrede, šumarstva i ribarstva)

“Istrian Sheep Cheese” / “Istrski Ovčji Sir” has been granted the European Union’s Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status, the European Commission announced in the Official Journal of the European Union on 10 December 2025, the Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement.

With this recognition, the product name has been entered into the EU register of geographical indications for agricultural products and is now protected across the entire European Union.

The EU PDO label displayed on the packaging guarantees consumers the purchase of an authentic, certified product.

The protection process for the name “Istrian Sheep Cheese” / “Istrski Ovčji Sir” was jointly initiated by Croatia’s Association of Istrian Goat and Sheep Breeders and Slovenia’s Association of Small Ruminant Breeders. In line with legal procedures, each organisation launched national registration processes in their respective countries.

After completing the national stages, the two associations submitted a joint application to the European Commission for PDO registration.

“Istrian Sheep Cheese” / “Istrski Ovčji Sir” is a hard, full-fat cheese produced by coagulating raw or pasteurised sheep’s milk with rennet, followed by whey separation. It is cylindrical in shape. The rind is smooth and uniformly yellow-brown to brown, while the interior ranges from ivory to straw yellow.

The cheese is characterised by a slightly elastic yet sliceable to mildly crumbly texture. It offers a rich, nourishing flavour, salty and piquant, with a pronounced aroma of sheep’s milk and the wild and cultivated plants on which the sheep graze.

With longer maturation, the cheese develops a typically robust, full-bodied and nourishing taste, while the characteristic sheep’s milk aroma intensifies. Aged cheeses melt in the mouth, releasing increasingly concentrated flavours.

The distinctive characteristics and quality of “Istrian Sheep Cheese” / “Istrski Ovčji Sir” stem from the semi-extensive rearing system, the milk composition of the indigenous Istrian sheep breed (Istrian Pramenka), and the region’s long tradition and expertise in sheep cheese production.

Croatia now has 52 registered products recognised in the European Union as Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) or Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG), listed in the EU registers of geographical indications and traditional specialities.

Alongside the newly registered “Istrian Sheep Cheese” / “Istrski Ovčji Sir”, Croatia’s protected products include:

Samoborski bermet, Krčki pršut, Ekstra djevičansko maslinovo ulje Cres, Neretvanska mandarina, Ogulinsko kiselo zelje / Ogulinski kiseli kupus, Baranjski kulen, Lički krumpir, Istarski pršut / Istrski pršut, Drniški pršut, Dalmatinski pršut, Poljički soparnik / Poljički zeljanik / Poljički uljenjak, Zagorski puran, Krčko maslinovo ulje, Korčulansko maslinovo ulje, Paška janjetina, Šoltansko maslinovo ulje, Varaždinsko zelje, Slavonski kulen / Slavonski kulin, Međimursko meso ‘z tiblice, Slavonski med, Lička janjetina, Istra, Paška sol, Zagorski mlinci, Paški sir, Bjelovarski kvargl, Brački varenik, Varaždinski klipič, Malostonska kamenica, Rudarska greblica, Dalmatinska pečenica, Dalmatinska panceta, Lički škripavac, Bračko maslinovo ulje, Zagorski bagremov med, Zagorski štrukli / Zagorski štruklji, Meso istarskog goveda – boškarina / Meso istrskega goveda – boškarina, Samoborska češnjovka / Samoborska češnofka, Lumblija, Goranski medun, Dalmatinska janjetina, Slavonska kobasica, Komiški rogač, Novigradska dagnja, Varaždinsko bučino ulje, Meso turopoljske svinje, Meso crne slavonske svinje, Ludbreški hren, Vrbovečka pera, Istarski med / Istrski med and Dalmatinski med.