First organized production of hemp products (rope) in former Yugoslavia was formed in Stojkovac near Leskovac as far back as 1884. During the time of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, in 1901, the »Industry for processing flax and hemp« was established in Osijek (Croatia). The rope factory in Odžaci was later established in 1906. Just before the WW2, while Germany was exstensively preparing itself for war, more than 200 hemp producing and processing plants emerged from the plains of Vojvodina.