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XtraBlatt issue 01-2016

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  • Krone
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MENSCHEN INTERNATIONAL

MENSCHEN INTERNATIONAL Agriculture in Austria FROM THE PASTU Managing all aspects: Fritz Egger farms permanent pasture, milks and feeds cattle, slaughters and prepares the meat for subsequent direct sale in his hotel or through his own retail outlet. And all this takes place in picturesque Tyrolean St. Johann. 28

RE TO THE PLATE In summer, the cows are driven onto the alm and also milked up there. As we drive into the region mid-March, there’s still some snow lying in the valleys. But the ski lifts haven’t stopped. There’s enough snow on the pistes for rapid downhill thrills. Fritz Egger’s farm is right in the midst of all this: on the north slopes of the Kitzbühler Horn. From here, there’s a breathtaking panorama of the “Wilden Kaiser” with its peaks soaring over 2,300 m. On the Egger farm, we’re welcomed by manager Christoph Niedermoser. Hospitality is king up here. He invites us into the staff premises and offers us a traditional “brotzeit” snack – just as we’d hoped … In the farm’s own delicatessen market, home produced meat is offered. One highlight is certainly the dry aged beef matured on the hook for around two months. “In total nowadays, we farm around 100 ha grazing land. Additionally there’s an awful lot of forest area”, says Niedermoser with a twinkle in his eye. The farm lies at 700 m, although the “alm” – the mountain pastures belonging to the farm – stretches up to 1,900 m. The full-time staff of four look after the grass and forest as well as around 200 head of cattle. “We milk 100 cows and feed bullocks for slaughter”, explains Christoph Niedermoser. Main breed here is the Fleckvieh, although crosses with Belgian Blue and Limousin prove best for meat production. Some of the male Fleckvieh calves from the dairy herd are sold straight off the cows whilst steers from the beef breeds are kept and fed for two to two-and-a-half years. 29