In 1982, the establishment of the Chair of General Programme Foundations began, which included foreign language teaching. Until 1982, foreign language classes were held by several professors from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences through SAS. From 1982 to 1996, the Cabinet for Foreign Languages operated within the Chair of General Programme Foundations, which operated within the Department of Process Engineering.

Following the reorganization of the Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, University of Zagreb in 1996, the Chair of General Programme Foundations was separated from the Department of Process Engineering, and a separate Department of General Programmes (VI Department) was established. Today, the Department of General Programmes comprises the Subdepartment of Economics, the Subdepartment of Foreign Languages, the Subdepartment of Physical Education, and the Laboratory of Sustainable Development.