Mostar’s Jasmina Ćušić started Eko Jasmina, a small store for organic fruits and vegetables, five years ago to “revolt against the system in Bosnia and Herzegovina”. Despite her advanced degrees as a graduate professor of the English language, Jasmina could not find a job because she was not a member of a political party. But something positive emerged from this situation – she has started a business which is growing stronger every day and attracting more and more people. Agriculture instead of a political affiliation “I was told that I had to become a member of a certain political party to get a job in education. I didn’t want to be a part of that, so I embarked on my own adventure,” Jasmina says. Agriculture, she says, was what was closest to her heart at the time. She grew up in the countryside and wanted to take advantage of the knowledge she already had. She thought running a small agriculture business could have big potential, so she decided to produce organic food. She received orders via Facebook and then brought them to her small stand in front of the Ero Hotel in Mostar. At first, they only harvested three crops, but now they harvest 80 to 90 different fruits and vegetables. Jasmina says this is all thanks to the favorable Herzegovinian climate and fertile land. “God has gifted us with good land, water, and a climate that is favorable for production year-round. In addition to producing typical Bosnian crops, we are also trying to introduce new crops and experiment with tropical fruits. We currently have kiwano, Peruvian strawberry, yellow watermelon, and sweet potato, which was a novelty three years ago. Our country is especially suitable for tropical fruits, because summer lasts almost from the beginning of May to the middle of October, and we have a lot of sunny days. We should take full advantage of these conditions,” explains Jasmina. The pandemic strengthened the business Although the coronavirus pandemic shut down many shops and wreaked havoc on farmers throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, Eko Jasmina did not feel its consequences. Jasmina says that they were among the first to try to comply with all prescribed epidemiological measures. “We had to adapt to all kinds of situations because it was very important to pack our products without making any physical contact. How our products were packed, who packed them, and how they were delivered became very important. People recognized that we strictly followed the rules and cared about our customers’ safety, which helped us avoid the pandemic’s adverse effects on small businesses. I think it actually strengthened our business,” says Jasmina. Jasmina says many people realized how important it is to have their own space for food production after the period of uncertainty at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. “People think that agriculture is physically difficult or that it is only done by uneducated people who cannot do anything else. However, more and more educated people are turning to organic production because that is the future. I think that, given the increase in the global population and the need for food, people will increasingly think about having a small parcel of land in the countryside where they can produce food, at least for themselves,” says Jasmina. Organic food tour throughout BiH There is no time to rest for Jasmina and her team. Every day is different. They are in Sarajevo on Mondays and Thursdays, Zenica on Tuesdays, Tuzla on Wednesdays, and Banja Luka on Fridays. After that, they go to western Herzegovina, including Široki Brijeg, Ljubuški, Grude, Međugorje, and Čitluk. “Every day is a rollercoaster, something new is always happening, and it’s never boring. In the afternoon, we are usually in a field in Višnjići or Nevesinje. That’s my Bermuda Triangle together with Mostar [laughs]. We’re always at one of those locations. If we have nothing to do, then we enjoy nature because that, at least for me, is my greatest pleasure,” says Jasmina. Although the only brick-and-mortar store for Eko Jasmina is in Mostar, they plan to open a store in Banja Luka soon. They also plan to organize easier delivery methods. “We recently signed a contract with BH Post to create a new food delivery program, where vegetables will come directly from the field to the consumer in a much shorter period. Currently, in every city, we have our stand where people come and take their orders. We’ve had a lot of offers to sell in retail chains, but so far, I have refused to do that because I don’t trust the people who work there, and I can’t be sure that they wouldn’t sell products that aren’t mine under my name in the event of a product shortage. Since I can’t control it, I didn’t want to agree to it,” says Jasmina.