Do you also love cheese threads, bryndza, sheep or goat cheese? If you like them at least as much as we do, we warmly invite you to a great event. In mid-June, Ovenálie will take place in Liptov - a traditional nationwide shepherd festival where you can see sheep shearing, cheese delicacy production, and many diverse competitions.
The Association of Sheep and Goat Breeders in Slovakia, in cooperation with the municipality of Východná and under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Slovak Republic and the State Veterinary and Food Administration of the Slovak Republic, organizes on Sunday, June 12, 2022 the 13th edition of the nationwide shepherd festival Ovenálie 2022.
The event has been very popular for several years, although it was not held in the last two years due to the pandemic. The organizers are even more excited about this year’s edition as they promised a truly rich program. Visitors can look forward to performances by folklore ensembles from various regions of Slovakia, as well as truly interesting activities that you won’t see every day, such as demonstrations of cheese, bryndza production, sheep shearing, and wool processing. The festival will take place at the amphitheater of the village Východná with the official opening at 10:00. Folklore ensembles will start performing at 9:30, so don’t be late in the morning.
"We are very pleased that this year we can finally organize this unique great festival again, which helps us remind and bring closer to the general public. Our goal is to show visitors how sought-after traditional cheese products are made and what is behind them. In recent years, interest in this difficult but beautiful and meaningful craft has been fading, so we are glad that such an event helps us reverse this trend and attract more and more enthusiasts. Not only consumers but especially new shepherds, enthusiastic farmers, and to revive sheep and goat breeding in Slovakia", said Mrs. Ing. Mária Mularčiková, member of ZCHOK.
At Ovenálie 2022, you can also look forward to several very interesting competitions open to everyone (details about competitions, applications, and rules can be found at www.zchok.sk). The eyes, soul, and stomach will surely be pleased by the competition for the most beautiful cheese cake, the popular gourmet competition "Master Cheesemaker" - where only the best sheep and goat cheese wins, or the sheep meat goulash cooking competition. Visitors can also look forward to the 13th Slovak Championship in cheese thread pulling. It is a very spectator-friendly competition, where in 2018 contestant Janka Mäsiarová set a record by pulling a thread with an incredible length of 196.5 m from 1 kg of cheese curd. This record is even registered in the Book of Slovak Records, so we are very curious if someone will break this record this year.
For all fans of lamb, sheep, and mutton meat, a shepherd raffle is prepared, where the main prize is LAMB FOR THE WHOLE YEAR.
Throughout the day, the shepherd’s farmyard will offer visitors tastings of products made from sheep and goat milk. The organizers have not forgotten those who love handicrafts. For you, there will also be stalls with handicraft products related to sheep and goat breeding, as well as demonstrations of their production.
These festivities are also loved by our children because they have the opportunity to see live animals - sheep, goats, poultry, rabbits, and pigeons.
We believe this upcoming event has excited you and you will take your family on June 12 for a beautiful all-day trip full of tradition and the scent of meadows. More information as well as competition details, applications, and rules can be found at www.zchok.sk.
