News Detail

AGRANA starts manufacturing disinfectants

Date: 16.04.2020
  • Manufacture of disinfectants at Austria Juice in Kröllendorf (Lower Austria) based on WHO formulation
  • Some of the disinfectants produced to be donated via AGRANA production sites in Lower Austria, Upper Austria and Styria to residential homes and social organisations in the relevant region
  • Total production volume: 40,000 litres of disinfectant per week
  • CEO Marihart: “A contribution to addressing a key supply shortage” 


Against the background of the corona crisis, the bioethanol produced at AGRANA’s site in Pischelsdorf (Tulln District) has recently been approved for use in the manufacture of disinfectants. Besides supplying high-proof alcohol to major customers in the downstream disinfectant manufacturing sector, AGRANA itself has also started making surface and hand disinfectants. A share of the disinfectants manufactured will be distributed free-of-charge to care and social organisations in Lower Austria, Upper Austria and Styria. More specifically, these disinfectants, which will be distributed by the relevant site managers, will be donated to institutions located in the vicinity of AGRANA facilities in Aschach/Donau (Upper Austria), Gmünd, Kröllendorf, Leopoldsdorf, Pischelsdorf and Tulln (all in Lower Austria) and in Gleisdorf (Styria). The first handover by the site manager in Kröllendorf to the “Lebenshilfe-Niederösterreich” organisation (Hiesbach) took place earlier today (see attached photo).

Johann Marihart, CEO of AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG: “We are delighted to be able to contribute to addressing the shortage of disinfectants during the corona crisis. I would particularly like to thank the relevant public authorities, which swiftly and unbureaucratically granted the authorisation for this special use of the alcohol and the tax-free status of the disinfectant manufactured.”

The manufacture and filling of the hand and surface disinfectants is being undertaken by the AGRANA/Raiffeisen Ware subsidiary Austria Juice in Kröllendorf (Lower Austria). The fruit juice concentrate plant at this site speedily set up a line on which the disinfectant is being filled into 25-litre canisters. Austria Juice can produce up to 40,000 litres of disinfectant per week.

The high-proof alcohol acting as the basis for the disinfectant comes from the bioethanol plant in Pischelsdorf (Lower Austria), which produces a total of around 600,000 litres of bioethanol per day. The precondition for producing disinfectants based on alcohol was a certificate of exception from the Austrian Biocidal Products Regulation issued by the Ministry of Environment. 

The disinfectants can also be purchased directly from Austria Juice. Please send requests via email to desinfektionsmittel@Remove thisaustriajuice.com.

 

About AGRANA

AGRANA converts agricultural raw materials into high-quality foods and numerous industrial intermediate products. Around 9,600 employees at 57 production sites worldwide generate annual Group revenue of approximately € 2.4 billion. Established in 1988, the company is the world’s market leader in fruit preparations and the leading producer of fruit juice concentrates in Europe. In addition, its Starch segment is also a major manufacturer of custom starch products and bioethanol. AGRANA is also the leading sugar producer in Central and Eastern Europe.

 

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