Finally finding her place under the sun (even though it was snowing heavily all over Zagreb at that exact time), Zlata Bartl didn't take long to grasp the concept of working as a chemical technician.

Podravka was everything she wished the workplace could be! Surrounded by friendly colleagues, Zlata was more than allowed to express her enthusiasm for chemistry. And such an environment increased Zlata's innovation! An idea slowly developed in her brilliant mind...

Encouraged by the good business atmosphere, in 1959 Zlata Bartl started the production of new products - Podravka's soups, which Zlata wanted to be similar to her mother's.

This is how the first instant soups from a bag were created: pea soup, mushroom soup with pasta, mushroom soup with potatoes and vegetable soup with semolina.

Driven by the euphoria for new products, Zlata finally comes up with the idea for the spice "Vegeta". Today, the famous Vegeta is a nutritional supplement that is in demand all over the world!

Modest Zlata was the winner of numerous awards, including the Croatian Technical Culture Award, the Lifetime Achievement Award for many years of work and outstanding achievements of the City of Koprivnica, the award of the President of the Republic of Croatia in the order of Danica with the image of Nikola Tesla, and Aunt Vegeta also received the Golden Kuna of the Croatian Economy chambers for life work.

- All my life I dreamed of creating something that would be useful. I'm not just referring to Vegeta, because I've often thought about minerals, and to dedicate myself more to that segment of scientific study. I wouldn't change my life because I was always happy when I was creating something. – said Zlata, our local, only and famous "Aunt Vegeta"!

From Podravka to eternity

Zlata

Dino

We can thank Zlata Bartl, known as Aunt Vegeta, for the pleasure of the taste of Vegeta, which we use every day in the preparation of various dishes.

Zlata Bartl was born in Sarajevo in 1920, where she completed elementary school and high school. Unwilling to follow in the footsteps of her mother, who was a housewife, young Zlata had only one wish even in her early days - to go to study in Zagreb.

There she entered the Faculty of Philosophy and, in a few years, earned the incredible title of professor of physics, chemistry, mathematics, mineralogy and meteorology.

Still unknown, "Aunt Vegeta" was very versatile. Already at that time she spoke four languages ​​(German, Portuguese, French and Italian). But her love was hidden in other fields.

Namely, in addition to her pronounced love for music and flowers, Zlata Bartl was a passionate lover of chemistry. However, somehow life managed to lead her to everything, except chemistry. Namely, once she even ended up in prison while traveling with her students to Italy. Since Zlata was previously a member of the Ustasha youth, the Italians did not welcome her with open arms, convinced that Zlata sympathized with Italian fascism.

In prison, Zlata fell ill with tuberculosis, but in the end, her series of unfortunate events unraveled when she arrived in snowy Zagreb. Namely, in the capital, Podravka, she was looking for a chemical technician to work in the laboratory.

Everything further is history. The history that was left written on our plates!

From Podravka to eternity

Snowy Zagreb and a new invention

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Zlata Bartl – Teta Vegeta