Famous habitats in Croatia are in Istria region. Just like other truffle species, it grows under the ground without a visible stalk on the surface. Its flavour and smell depend on the plant with which it grows in symbiosis.
It is excavated by a professional truffle seeker after a specially trained dog has tracked its smell.
Zigante tartufi Ltd. is the first and only company in Istria and Croatia specialised in preservation, packaging and sales of truffles. The company was founded in 1992 and developed from a 30-year family tradition, i.e. experience in truffle seeking. The company is owned by the Zigante family, which dedicated its business to the commercialisation of the Istrian truffle, with the objective of achieving its recognisability and competitiveness on European market.
Owner of this company Mr. Giancarlo Zigante entered the Guinness Book of World Records. He found the biggest truffle weighted 1.31 kg.
In order to enable the availability of the truffle on the market throughout the year, a system of preservation of truffles was developed and commenced in 1996.
