Buy Natural Casings – High-Quality Sausage Casings for Sausage Production

Nature provides the best casing. Natural casings have been used in traditional sausage making for centuries and remain the casing of choice for many sausage specialties today. Whether for fine Vienna sausages, crisp Frankfurters, coarse bratwurst, Weisswurst, raw sausages, Fleischwurst or liver sausage – there is a suitable natural casing for almost every type of sausage.

At Markus Heucher GmbH, you can buy high-quality natural casings for both professional and home sausage making. Our range includes natural casings from different animal species in various calibers and quality grades and is continuously being expanded.

We place particular emphasis on high quality, attractive prices, a broad selection and fast availability. Our range is aimed at butcher shops, meat-processing businesses, foodservice operators, food manufacturers and anyone who wants to make high-quality sausages.

 > Natural casings in our shop

What Are Natural Casings?

Natural casings are natural sausage casings of animal origin. Depending on the type of sausage being produced, prepared intestines from sheep, hogs or cattle are used.

The different types of natural casings vary in diameter, wall thickness, shape and processing characteristics. This means that not every type of casing is equally suitable for every type of sausage.

A natural casing does much more than simply act as packaging. It gives the sausage its characteristic shape, influences the mouthfeel and provides the distinctive bite associated with many traditional sausage specialties.

Natural casings are also edible. For the appropriate types of sausage, the natural casing is eaten together with the sausage.

What Types of Natural Casings Are Available?

Some of the most important natural casings used in sausage production are sheep casings, hog casings and beef casings. Within these categories, there are different casing types, calibers and sorting grades.

Sheep Casings – Particularly Tender Natural Casings

Sheep casings are made from the prepared small intestine of sheep. They are among the thinnest and most tender natural casings and are particularly suitable for sausages with smaller diameters.

Typical applications include Vienna sausages, Frankfurters, Nuremberg-style bratwurst and other cooked and raw sausages. A particularly characteristic feature is the distinctive snap that a high-quality sheep casing gives the finished sausage.

Sheep casings can be filled with both finely emulsified sausage meat and coarser-textured sausage mixtures. The caliber of the casing therefore does not determine whether the sausage mixture itself needs to be fine or coarse.

Hog Casings – The Versatile Classic

Hog casings are among the most versatile natural casings used in sausage production. They are available in a variety of calibers and are suitable for numerous traditional sausage products.

Typical applications include bratwurst, Weisswurst, Bockwurst, Knackwurst, Mettenden, Cabanossi and Landjäger.

The range of available calibers allows the natural casing to be selected according to the desired diameter of the finished sausage.

Beef Casings and Beef Rounds

Cattle also provide a variety of natural casings for sausage production. These include beef rounds, beef middles, beef bungs and other specialized beef casings.

Beef rounds are particularly distinctive because of their naturally curved shape. They are used, for example, for ring-shaped Fleischwurst and Lyoner, Regensburger sausages and certain blood, liver and raw sausage products.

The appropriate type of beef casing depends on the sausage being produced, the required diameter and the production process.

Which Natural Casing Should I Use for Which Sausage?

Choosing the right natural casing primarily depends on the type of sausage, desired diameter and production method.

As a general guide:

• Vienna sausages and Frankfurters: often sheep casings
• Nuremberg-style bratwurst: often sheep casings
• Bratwurst: sheep or hog casings, depending on the desired diameter
• Weisswurst: typically hog casings
• Bockwurst and Knackwurst: often hog casings
• Mettenden, Cabanossi and Landjäger: often hog casings
• Ring-shaped Fleischwurst and Lyoner: for example, beef rounds
• Blood and liver sausages: various hog or beef casings depending on the product
• Raw sausages and salami: different natural casings depending on the sausage type and desired diameter

These recommendations are intended as a general guide. The optimum casing type and caliber also depend on the recipe, stuffing technique, production method and desired finished product.

What Does the Caliber of a Natural Casing Mean?

When buying natural casings, you will quickly encounter specifications such as 18/20, 22/24, 28/30 or 32/34. These numbers refer to the casing's caliber.

The caliber describes the sorted diameter of the natural casing in millimeters.

A natural casing with a 28/30 caliber, for example, has a diameter of approximately 28 to 30 mm.

As a general rule, the larger the caliber, the larger the possible diameter of the finished sausage.

However, the caliber does not describe the grind or texture of the sausage mixture. Coarsely ground sausage mixtures can also be filled into smaller natural casings, provided the recipe, particle size and processing method are suitable.

What Does 1 Hank Mean for Natural Casings?

Natural casings are traditionally traded in units known as hanks. The hank is an internationally established trading unit in the natural casing industry.

1 hank = 100 yards = 91.44 meters

In European trade, this length is commonly simplified to approx. 91 m.

A product sold as “1 hank” therefore contains approximately 91 meters of natural casing. A hank usually consists of several individual casing sections rather than one continuous 91-meter length.

What Does “Long-Stranded” Mean for Natural Casings?

Long-stranded refers to a sorting characteristic in the natural casing trade. It describes casings sorted to provide relatively long individual casing sections.

Longer sections can be particularly beneficial in professional production because the casing needs to be reloaded less frequently during stuffing.

The actual length of the individual sections depends on the casing type, origin and sorting grade. “Long-stranded” therefore does not mean that an entire hank consists of one continuous casing.

What Does “Ready to Fill” Mean?

Natural casings are available in different preparation and packaging formats. Ready-to-fill natural casings are prepared to make further processing as quick and straightforward as possible.

Other options include traditionally salted natural casings as well as casings pre-loaded onto tubes for efficient machine processing.

The preparation required before stuffing can vary from product to product. The processing instructions provided by the manufacturer or supplier should therefore always be followed.

Can You Eat Natural Casings?

Yes. Natural casings are generally edible sausage casings.

For sausages such as Vienna sausages, Frankfurters, bratwurst and many raw sausage specialties, the natural casing is eaten together with the sausage.

Mouthfeel is one of the characteristic properties of natural casings. With sheep casings, for example, the distinctive snap or bite is an important characteristic of the finished sausage.

Can Natural Casings Be Smoked?

Many natural casings are highly suitable for smoked sausage products. The natural casing is permeable and can therefore support processes that are important during smoking and maturation.

The most suitable casing type depends on the sausage being produced. Sheep casings, for example, are used for smoked sausages, while hog and beef casings are used for numerous other smoked cooked and raw sausage products.

Why Choose Natural Casings Instead of Artificial Casings?

Natural casings and manufactured sausage casings each have different characteristics and applications. The appropriate casing therefore depends on the product and production process.

Natural casings offer several distinctive characteristics:

• Natural and edible sausage casing
• Characteristic bite and mouthfeel
• Individual, traditional appearance
• Suitable for numerous cooked, raw, cooked-meat and fresh sausage products
• Good properties for many smoked and matured sausage products
• Traditional raw material for artisan and professional sausage production
• Use of an animal-derived raw material in line with the nose-to-tail principle

Natural casings therefore contribute to the more complete and responsible utilization of the slaughtered animal. An existing animal-derived raw material is carefully processed and put to valuable further use as a high-quality, functional sausage casing.

How Do I Choose the Right Natural Casing?

When choosing a natural casing, four factors are particularly important: the type of sausage, desired diameter, production method and required processing characteristics.

For thin sausages such as Vienna sausages or Frankfurters, sheep casings are often a suitable choice. Hog casings are frequently used for traditional bratwurst and many other sausage varieties. For larger diameters or characteristic ring-shaped sausages, certain beef casings such as beef rounds may be appropriate.

The next step is to select the correct caliber. An 18/20 caliber, for example, produces a considerably slimmer sausage than a 28/30 or 32/34 caliber.

For professional production, additional factors such as strand length, caliber consistency, filling strength and packaging or preparation format can also play an important role.

How Should Natural Casings Be Stored and Prepared?

Because natural casings are food products or products intended for food production, they must be stored and handled appropriately.

Correct storage and preparation depend in particular on how the casing has been preserved and packaged. Traditionally salted casings require different preparation from ready-to-fill casings.

Therefore, the storage, shelf-life and processing instructions for the individual product always take priority. In particular, ready-to-fill casings should not automatically be assumed to require the same preparation as traditionally salted casings.

Buy Natural Casings from Markus Heucher GmbH

Whether you make sausages professionally or at home, you need a natural casing that suits both the product and the production process. At Markus Heucher GmbH, we are therefore building a broad range of natural casings for different applications.

Our aim is to combine professional quality with attractive prices and fast availability.

When you buy natural casings from us, you benefit from:

• High quality: carefully selected natural casings for demanding sausage production
• Very competitive prices: attractive conditions for professional users and ambitious sausage makers
• Broad selection: different casing types, quality grades and calibers for a wide variety of sausage specialties
• Options for different applications: from delicate sheep casings to hog and beef casings for larger diameters
• Specialist supplier for meat processing: natural casings complement our extensive product range for butcher shops, meat processors and food manufacturers

Buy Natural Casings – Quality, Selection and Fast Availability

Whether you are looking for sheep casings for Vienna sausages and Frankfurters, hog casings for bratwurst and Weisswurst, or beef rounds for Fleischwurst and other sausage specialties, Markus Heucher GmbH offers high-quality natural casings for a wide range of professional and home sausage-making applications.

When choosing your casing, consider the animal species, casing type, caliber, quality grade and preparation or packaging format. This will help you find the natural sausage casing that best suits your recipe and production method.

Natural casings from Markus Heucher – high quality, attractive prices, broad selection and fast availability.

 > Natural casings in our shop