TANN Factory Expansion – “Fake Meat”: When Peas Become Meatloaf

“Here you can also eat raw minced meat,” they say before the meat factory tour. You frown briefly and think of spaghetti Bolognese and the taste that develops with beef and pork fat. Word has spread across the country that it can now be done vegan, too.

In recent years, Spar-Veggie-Rail sales have almost doubled. “In 2023 alone, sales grew by 24 percent,” sums up TANN's production manager, Michael Fournier. A total of three million euros have been invested in the companies in St. Pölten and Wernberg to prepare for plant-based meat varieties. Every Spar vegan meatloaf sold throughout Austria is baked right here in the factory in the state capital. That should stay the case for the time being,

Meat will always be important.

In order to gain access to plant-based meat production, visitors to the meat plant first have to go through the animal processing stage – all in a hygiene suit. Because where raw meat is handled, external bacteria can become a problem. The steaks are carefully cut to portion sizes. “Even if the plant-based range is on the rise, meat will always be important,” emphasizes Alois Huber, CEO of Spar Lower Austria.

Spar knows where the animals delivered to the slaughterhouses at the Tann plant in the south of the state capital come from. “Everyone is talking about the forms of breeding at the moment – ​​but it is important for us that the question of origin does not fall into the background,” says Huber, “especially if large companies from abroad also implement animal welfare standards in the future, and local quality must take priority.”

The meat alternatives, pea protein and soy, do not come from Austria. Although peas are found in Austria, the protein is produced from special varieties that are not yet available in Austria. “At the moment, our pea protein comes from France and Germany. It includes twelve different types of peas, from which the protein is extracted and hydrolyzed – and different products can be produced with this mixture,” explains Fournier.

In 2022, the product range was expanded to include new meat-free products. The products are manufactured in a separate area, separate from the rest of the production. Three million euros were invested in appropriate machinery. “Although there is not much difference in processing compared to a regular meat loaf,” says the head of department. In addition to the vegetable protein, spices, stabilizers and fats are added to the mix. If you walk into the meat factory, you will only notice a difference in the typical smell of a fresh “real” meatloaf.

Meatless cooking

Even if there is still room in the Spar group, this is no longer the case in terms of consumption: In addition to the number of vegetarians, the number of vegans has also been steadily increasing in recent years, as the Austrian Vegetarian Society (ÖVG) announced last time autumn. According to a survey, 44 percent of Austrians follow a vegetarian, vegan, vegan or flexitarian diet – that is, they reduce their consumption of animal foods.

This is also changing the local gastronomy. Only recently, after much debate, was the regulation on vegan cooking announced. The training should last three years. The new apprenticeship will start in 2025. “In Austria, we always talk about what it should mean in the end. Very few opportunities are being exploited,” says Huber about the import of plant-based protein. One looks to the future with optimism. And minced meat? “Since it is not meat, it can be eaten raw, for example as a vegan beef curry.”