Started as a hobby, now a successful business: Dževad's goat farm is proof that success is possible

Although goat milk production accounts for only about three percent of the total milk production in the world, in the last twenty years there has been increasing popularity of goat farming, and thus an increase in the production of this valuable product, reports the Patria News Agency.

The Balkan region offers ideal conditions for raising these animals, which is why many people are turning to goat milk and its products as a healthier alternative to cow's milk.

One such example is the goat farm "Capris-kozarstvo i sirarstvo" in the village of Tursići, about twenty kilometers from Zavidovići, which has grown into a successful business in a short time.

Exactly 10 years ago, Dževad Tursić and his wife Nura settled in a weekend house and acquired a few goats as a hobby. Over time, with his family, he developed a business out of love on about five hectares of land, which certainly has a future.

-It all started as my father's hobby with five goats he kept for his own needs. I was living abroad, and upon my return, we started to engage in this business more seriously. Today, we have a herd of 150 goats, and despite all the problems we encounter in our daily operations, I can say that we are satisfied, Amir Tursić told eKapija.ba, emphasizing that all family members are involved in the business.

We all have our daily tasks. My wife Izabela is in charge of making cheese. In a facility equipped with modern machinery, several types of cheese are produced: Travnik, smoked, fresh, Trappist, and Kashkaval, with prices ranging from 12 to 25 KM per kilogram of cheese. He notes that the price is determined by the amount of milk used to produce one kilogram of cheese, and the price of a liter of milk is 2 KM.

-Currently, we only process milk produced on our farm. We do business with a few shopping centers, and our main customers are hotels and restaurants throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tursić told us, adding that after a quiet winter, they expect more business in the summer.

Speaking about the goals and plans they have set for themselves this year, they plan to expand their product range according to their capabilities.

-If everything goes according to plan, this year we plan to acquire additional equipment with which we will introduce two new products: yogurt and fruit yogurt, Amir emphasizes.

Otherwise, they are regular exhibitors at fairs throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, and last week they presented themselves at the fair in Banja Luka.