Emil Färber

Emil Färber GmbH & Co. KG is a German meat and fresh-food wholesaler headquartered in Emmendingen, Baden-Württemberg. It is described as one of the largest meat-product companies in Baden-Württemberg. The business was founded in 1877 as a local livestock trading operation in Villingen and has since grown into a regional fresh-food distribution group. Today the company operates under the brand Färber Frischezentrum and positions itself as a partner for quality in butchery, gastronomy and food retail. Its range covers meat (pork, beef, overseas beef, veal, poultry, lamb, offal and game), fish and seafood, sausage, cheese and dairy products, as well as pasta, potato products, convenience items, seasonal produce such as asparagus, field salad and mushrooms, vegetables, salads and eggs, sauces, fats and oils, and pet food. The official website states a range of around 15,000 articles. Distribution is organised through a network of locations. The official website cites 24 locations in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, while the German Wikipedia article cites 30 locations across Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Brandenburg and Saxony. The company operates a fleet of around 250 modern refrigerated vehicles and delivers just-in-time up to six days a week, with customers able to order at night for morning delivery or collect goods at branch offices. The company has also been involved in slaughtering operations. Its Neuruppin slaughterhouse participated in the Initiative Tierwohl and mainly slaughtered organic pigs, supplying customers including the Bio Company chain and Biomanufaktur Havelland. In early January 2021, after the German animal welfare organisation Deutsches Tierschutzbüro published covert video footage from August 2020 showing animal-welfare violations, the slaughter operation was shut down on 7 January 2021, the responsible slaughterer was dismissed, customers ended cooperation and the slaughterhouse was blocked in the QS system. Two employees lost their certification for stunning animals during slaughter. Emil Färber remains an active, privately held family-style wholesale business focused on the German market.

Emil Färber GmbH & Co. KG traces its origins to 1877, when it was founded as a local livestock trading business in Villingen. Over the following decades it developed into a meat and fresh-food wholesaler, and it is now counted among the largest meat-product companies in Baden-Württemberg, with its headquarters in Emmendingen. The company expanded its distribution footprint across several German federal states. Its official website describes 24 locations in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, while the German Wikipedia article cites 30 locations in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, Brandenburg and Saxony. It operates a fleet of around 250 modern refrigerated vehicles and offers just-in-time delivery up to six days a week, with the option for customers to order at night and receive goods in the morning, or to collect from branch offices. Its product range grew to cover meat, fish and seafood, sausage, cheese and dairy, and numerous other fresh and convenience categories, with the official website citing around 15,000 articles. The company also operated a slaughterhouse in Neuruppin. That facility participated in the Initiative Tierwohl and mainly slaughtered organic pigs, supplying customers such as the Bio Company chain and Biomanufaktur Havelland. In early January 2021, the Deutsches Tierschutzbüro published covert video footage recorded in August 2020 showing animal-welfare violations at the plant, including pigs being killed and mistreated with insufficient stunning. A criminal complaint had already been filed against those responsible in November 2020, and the Neuruppin public prosecutor's office opened an investigation. On 7 January 2021 the slaughter operation was stopped and the offending slaughterer was dismissed. The Bio Company and other customers ended their cooperation, the slaughterhouse was blocked in the QS system, and the district veterinarian of Ostprignitz-Ruppin withdrew the required expertise certificates for stunning from two employees. Despite this episode, Emil Färber continues to operate as a privately held wholesale group serving butchers, gastronomy and food retail in Germany.

• 2021

  On 7 January the Neuruppin slaughter operation was stopped and the offending slaughterer dismissed; customers ended cooperation and the plant was blocked in the QS system.

• 2020

  Criminal complaint filed in November against those responsible at the Neuruppin slaughterhouse.

• 1877

  Founded as a local livestock trading business in Villingen.

Quality partner and just-in-time supplier for butchery, gastronomy and food retail, emphasising freshness, regional proximity and reliability.

• Meat

  Pork, beef, overseas beef, veal, poultry, lamb, offal and game.

• Fish and seafood

  Fresh fish and seafood.

• Sausage

  Sausage products.

• Cheese and dairy

  Cheese and milk products.

• Other fresh and convenience items

  Pasta, potato products, convenience, seasonal produce, vegetables, salads, eggs, sauces, fats, oils and pet food.

• Neuruppin slaughterhouse animal welfare scandal

Read more

• Closure of Neuruppin slaughter operationOther

1. 1Färber Frischezentrum – Qualität für Genießer!faerber.de
2. 2Emil Färber – Wikipediade.wikipedia.org
3. 3Wikidata Q104717454wikidata.org