In Montenegro’s olive-grow­ing cen­ter of Bar, a pub­licly owned mill is com­bin­ing inno­va­tion, edu­ca­tion and tra­di­tion to pro­duce award-win­ning extra vir­gin olive oil.

Balša Baletić, an olive grower in Zeta near Podgorica, earned a Silver Award at the NYIOOC World Olive Oil Competition for Oro, a blend of Oblica, Istarska bjel­ica, Leccino and Pendolino.

Modern equip­ment, renewed col­lab­o­ra­tion, and respect for ancient groves are redefin­ing olive oil pro­duc­tion in Montenegro,.

In their efforts to turn the 2,247-year-old Stara Maslina into a tourist attrac­tion, local author­i­ties have inad­ver­tently dam­aged the iconic olive tree.

Visitors and vol­un­teers tasted early har­vest oils and helped har­vest the coun­try’s old­est tree.

While a court ruled that olive grow­ers were enti­tled to some com­pen­sa­tion, the emo­tional and cul­tural pains endure.

Working together, Montenegrin pro­duc­ers hope to repli­cate neigh­bor­ing Croatia’s suc­cess at the World Olive Oil Competition.

The Old Olive Tree in south­ern Montenegro is thought to be the old­est in Europe and the third-old­est in the world.